Did you know that paper shredding can be good for your health? Really.  Staples, the office supply retail chain, says it’s proved that with a survey of people who own home shredding machines. They asked 523 consumers about their “beliefs and emotions associated with shredding.”

According to Staples (which sells shredders. Did I forget to mention that?) 47 percent of respondents felt their stress level diminish after “the simple act of shredding.” In addition to experiencing “Post-Shredding Stress Reduction,” people felt smarter (85 percent), more organized (83 percent) and in control of their lives (80 percent).

I just had to test this out. So I looked for a committed shredder right here in the office, and he wasn’t hard to find  — Tony Kennedy, an investigative reporter here at the Star Tribune. Here’s a condensed version of our email exchange:

BodyTalk: So when did you first start shredding?

TK: I started shredding bank statements etc. at home about 10 years ago. Those were my earliest shredding memories. before that, I saved stuff like that and then burned it when we had fires in the yard.  Shredding is a better deal.

BodyTalk: I see. Do you shred in secret or when you are with other people?

TK:  I’ll shred in the open. My favorite shredder of all time is the one that sits… in the (manager area) so you know it’s a super-duty shredder – capable of confusing a newsroom full of reporters who could easily grab the shreddings of top-secret  documents and try to reassemble them.  I love the way it attacks the pages. It’s an intimidating machine if you haven’t stepped up to it before.

BodyTalk: Do you feel driven to shred?

TK:  Yes. I think its prehistoric, really. You want to cover your tracks to keep your the predators away.

BodyTalk: Does shredding make you feel happy?

TK: I get a sense of tidiness,  like I just swept out the garage, even the corners. No place for mice to hide. No fuss, no muss. So there is satisfaction… which I guess is happiness at some level.

So there you have it. And even if shredding does not make you happy, satisfied and relaxed, think of what you could do for a couple of guinea pigs.

This entry was posted on Monday, February 23rd, 2009 at 12:10 pm and is filed under mental health, stress. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.