There’s a Scientific Reason Baking for Other People Feels So Good
The health benefits just come rolling in!
Caught aย baking bug? Good! (Get started with theย perfect recipes for a fall bake sale.) If you canโt keep out of your kitchen, you now have a pretty good excuse: Baking has loads of psychological perks, experts say.
For starters, bakingย provides an opportunity for creativity and self-expression, which researchย shows increases overall well-being.ย โWhether itโs painting or itโs making music [or baking], there is a stress relief that people get from having some kind of an outlet and a way to express themselves,โ associate professor of psychological and brain sciences at Boston University, Donna Pincus, told HuffPost.
Itโs also a form of meditation and mindfulness,ย which means it forces you to focus on the present task. All of the activities involved for bakingโmeasuring ingredients, following step-by-step instructions, and concentrating on smell and tasteโrequire you toย discardย negative thoughts andย be productive, instead. And in addition to being a good skill to learn, mindfulness has also been shown to relieve depression and mental illness.ย Try even more ways to sneak mindfulness into your everyday life.
Plus, giving away what you baked to someone else increases thoseย feel-good vibes. Since baking is an act of giving and selflessness above all, it boosts yourย senseย of meaning and connection with others.
โThe most benefits would accrue when you bake not to seek attention or to out-do others, but when you just want to share the food with people who you believe will appreciate it,โ Susan Whitbourne, professor of psychological and brain sciences at the University of Massachusetts, told HuffPost.
Of course, those whoย feel anxious and stressedย while baking probably wonโt reap any of the positive benefits listed here.ย If that’s the case for you, find other activities that bring you a sense of joy and relaxation, such as exercise or reading a book. Psychologists agree: Bakingย should be enjoyable, or not done at all. Just make sure youโre not making these 12 disastrous baking mistakesย that even the most experienced bakers make.
[Source: HuffPost]