When I was younger and still to this day my parents liked to drag me and my siblings to National Trust locations or on long walks in the countryside. I used to hate going on these and sometimes I still do, however now I at least appreciate the positive effect these walks have on my mental health.
In a Stanford study (Bratman et al. 2015.), it was found that people who walked 30 minutes a day through nature reported a decrease in negative thoughts. They discovered that the urban walkers showed higher brain activity in an area of the brain linked to risk of mental illnesses in comparison to those who walked in nature. Furthermore, studies have also shown that nature walking has been linked to improved short-term memory, concentration, heart rate and blood pressure.
Since these recent discoveries, a type of therapy called nature therapy has become more popular, and it is particularly beneficial to those with anxiety and insomnia.
Therefore, if anyone is feeling down, I would massively recommend going on a walk through nature- it could really help.
References:
Bratman G. N., Hamilton J. P., Hahn K. S., et al. (2015)
Nature experience reduces rumination and subgenual prefrontal cortex activation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America112 8567-8572.
Written by Jasmine St Pier
Artwork by Lilly Johns
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