How to Promote Wellness in Your Kitchen

Inspired by products and trends at KBIS 2024

Eating healthier and losing weight show up on almost every top five New Year’s resolution list, but if you’re like many people, it is hard to keep this resolution as a sustainable one. Designing a great kitchen helps! 

People make the sensible connection between what they eat and their health, but miss out on the opportunity to design a kitchen space that supports the creation of healthy new habits and where preparing healthy and tasty meals is easy and fun.

To put it simply, your kitchen can help you create and enjoy healthier meals – or it can subtly sabotage your healthy eating efforts. How, you might be wondering?

Evaluate Your Kitchen Space

To better understand if your new kitchen supports overall wellness, ask yourself the following questions:

• Does your kitchen have good lighting?
• Are your countertops uncluttered surfaces available for preparing a healthy dinner?
• Are they quick and easy to clean afterward?
• What kind of small appliances do you own? If your answer is a slow cooker and blender or food processor, great! These helpful tools can help you create healthier meals.
• Are appliances easy to reach and in good condition?
• Are you confronted by a deep fryer? Replace it with a healthier kitchen tool, the air fryer.
• How accessible are your pots, pans, and cooking utensils? Do you need to strain your back (or get on your knees with a flashlight) to find the right skillet, or is it close at hand?
• Is your range or cooktop easy to cook on and clean afterward?
• Do you have a functional, reasonably quiet vent hood to pull cooking grease, odors, steam and smoke out of the kitchen? Do you remember to turn it on?
• Are your pantry and refrigerator stocked with fresh foods and seasonings to make healthier meals? Are their shelves easy to see into and access?
• Do your sink, faucet and dishwasher make cleanup easier after you cook?

All of these factors can make cooking a pleasure or a pain. Plus, making your own meals means complete control over portion size, fat, salt, sugar, and overall nutrition.

If getting a healthier meal to the table (or into a bag for lunch at work) is quicker and more enjoyable, you end up doing more meal prep at home, supporting your healthy eating goals now and the years to come.

How New Trends Can Help

From smart technology to interesting hinges designed to create multifunctional spaces in your kitchen the innovations and offerings from KBIS 2024 are sure to elevate your kitchen. Textured panels are making a presence to boost creative design and visual interest. Find layered lighting to be a trend that will elevate your space. The design is in the details. Anything that makes the hub of your home more relaxing and inviting is a good way to start.

Look for creative high utility storage that extends beyond cabinets and pantries. Nutrition and wellness elements are prioritized with minimalistic designs for easy maintenance. Discover the serenity of a relaxing kitchen environment with appliances including quiet dishwashers and soft closing cabinet doors to reduce noise.

Some current trends that make a kitchen your own include arched doorways, reeded cabinets, and curved faucets. Gold is the top color for kitchen faucets, with matte, brushed, and satin finishes being the most popular.

Cooking on smart appliances is a dream with voice activation and AI-powered interfaces. KBIS, as it’s known in the trade industry, is where companies like these bring their new fixtures, appliances and other wares for design and building pros to see in one massive expo.

In 2024 appliance manufacturers including LG, Samsung, Miele, and SubZero brought a new level of connectivity. From verbally cueing coffee makers to a visual fridge to touchless and hands-free fixtures, the kitchen continues to evolve.

Induction cooktops are cleaner and faster in helping you create those healthy meals. While many appliance manufacturers have built air fryers into their ovens to reduce unhealthy frying and the need for additional small appliances.

Small Changes Add Up

The good news is, even if you’re not in a position to update your kitchen right now, or you’re not quite ready to build or buy your dream home, you can still have some of these features in your kitchen to help support your healthy eating goals.

If you’re spending hours meal prepping for work in your kitchen, you might also want to add an anti-fatigue mat where you spend the most time standing. Your back, hips, knees, ankles, and feet will thank you – and be in better shape for your runs, hikes, or rides.