Indoor Water Features, Negative Ions, and You
Indoor water features are rapidly increasing in popularity in the United States. Today, a wide variety of captivating models of indoor water features are showing up in homes across the country. But appearances aren’t the exclusive reason for the recent interior fountain trend. Indoor water features are also gaining interest for their mood-altering qualities. Using water fountains to counter unhappiness? It may not be as far fetched as it may seem.
Small Indoor Water Features - Tabletop Size
Indoor water featyres give off airborne particles called negative ions. Perhaps you might remember from your high school chemistry class, a negative ion is a molecule that has dropped one or more electrons, and therefore has a negative charge. For water features the negative ions are airborne water molecules generated by the turbulence in an interior fountain. These negative ions provide some very favorable effects. Negative ions, due to their electrical charge, stick to impurities in the environment, removing things such as dust and smoke particles. In addition many experts now are convinced that negative ions, like those released by an interior water fountain, might also have a strong mood enhancing effect.
A scientific study at Columbia University concluded that inhaling negative ions, like those produced by an indoor water feature, can enhance the production of serotonin, the brain chemical tied to mood. Those with clinical depression produce abnormally reduced amounts of serotonin. Hence, most antidepressant remedies attempt to counter the condition by raising serotonin levels.
You might visualize serotonin as “joy juice”; the more you have, the happier you may be. Further research is needed, but ion treatments might provide an alternate treatment for depression, by elevating serotonin levels without the harmful side effects associated with many anti-depressant drugs.
As with many early research findings, this one has its limitations. It has not yet been determined how large of an indoor water feature would be necessary to yield useful levels of negative ions. The research remains ongoing. What is clear, nonetheless, is that no interior water feature will hurt. Even modest indoor water features, with their calming white noise, are practically guaranteed to enhance your surroundings… and perhaps your mood as well.
