How Nature Benefits Health
When is the last time you visited your local park? Doing so more often could improve your physical and mental health, according to a team of Australian and English researchers. They determined that city dwellers who visit parks for 30 minutes or more per week are much less likely to have high blood pressure or poor mental health than their peers who don’t. Study leader Danielle Shanahan of the University of Queensland said that if everyone visited their local parks for half an hour each week there would be seven percent fewer cases of depression and nine percent fewer cases of high blood pressure in Australia. The study cited a growing body of research going back 40 years showing that “experiences of nature are linked to a remarkable breadth of positive health outcomes” including a reduced risk of allergies, fewer deaths from cardiovascular disease, improved self-perceived general health, less stress, anxiety and depression, and more physical activity. All told, the researchers concluded that for good health we all could use a regular “minimum dose of nature.”
Source:
Danielle F. Shanahan et al, “Health Benefits from Nature Experiences Depend on Dose.” Scientific Reports, 2016; 6: 28551 DOI: 10.1038/srep28551
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