Can Your Home Make You Healthier? – With Dr. Esther Sternberg
5/28/202654 min
Should the home be considered one of the pillars of health?
Dr. Esther Sternberg believes good design can heal us — and that architects should think of themselves not just as designers, but almost as health professionals.
Esther is a physician and researcher whose work focuses on the relationship between mind, body and environment. She is the author of Healing Spaces and Well at Work, which explores the growing science of how the spaces we inhabit affect our health and wellbeing.
In this conversation, we discuss how our environments shape the body and brain; the role of light, sound and nature in wellbeing; and how small changes to our homes can help create a sense of sanctuary in an increasingly anxious world.
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Music by @simeonwalkermusic
Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office
Produced by @podshoponline
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsEsther Sternberg· Guest0:00
If you're exposed in the evening to 30 minutes of blue light, that's as, uh, alerting, as awakening as a cup of coffee. I think that people nowadays really are seeking safe places to escape all of the many fears and troubles of the world, uh, we have no control over whatsoever, and your home can be your sanctuary if you pay attention to these features and to intentionally include them all around you.
Matt Gibberd· Host0:36
[gentle music] Hi there. Welcome back to Homing. Today's episode is part of our foundation series, and I'm delighted to welcome Dr. Esther Sternberg. She's a physician and researcher whose work focuses on the relationship between mind, body, and environment. Esther's the author of the books Healing Spaces and Well at Work, which both explore the growing science around how the spaces we inhabit affect our health. Esther argues that our homes are constantly sending signals to the nervous system. She believes that architects should think of themselves not just as designers, but almost as health professionals. In this conversation, we discuss how our environments shape the body and the brain, the role of light, sound, and nature