There's
something about being in nature, it has the magical ability
to comfort
you, especially in times when you need it most. It has the ability to
put your thoughts back into perspective and bring about an overwhelming
feeling of peace. Have you ever tried it?
Go out on a walk, basking
yourself amid trees, grass and all that
nature has to offer, in your
lowest of moods, or on your most stressful of days. Personally, I have
found that stepping outside, breathing in the natural air on my off
days, helps bring me back to my center and
regain my focus. But it's not
just my take on things. research too, consistently finds that nature has a profound impact on the brain. |
| So, what effects does nature have on the brain? |
| 1. Being in nature makes you feel more alive |
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Spending a day at the park or
going on a hike can make you feel incredibly energized, not just
mentally, but physically too, and this theory has been backed by a study conducted by the University of Rochester,
which found that spending time outdoors not only makes
you happier, it
can also lead to a surge of energy. So next time
you're feeling
depleted, head to a park instead of reaching for a
cup of coffee. |
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| 2. Nature has the ability to improve memory |
Walking in nature can improve your memory by up to 20%. A study
conducted at the University of Michigan attempted to prove this by
giving participants a 35 minute task which involved repeating loads
of
random numbers back to the experimenter but in reverse order.
After this
they went out for a walk, one group around an arboretum,
and the other down a busy street. They each repeated the memory
test upon their
return. Results showed that those who wandered
among the trees improved
by almost 20%, while those who
walked down a busy street did not see any
improvement.
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| 3. It has the ability to reduce acute stress |
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There is a practice in Japan called shinrin-yoku, which literally
means forest bathing. This study proved that 798 people found
shinrin-yoku
to be an especially useful technique among those
suffering from acute
stress. The Japanese researchers also
discovered that forest-bathing
reduced hostility and depression
and increased people's liveliness. In another study,
the journal Landscape and Urban Planning found that adults who lived in
areas with the most amount of green space experienced lower
levels of
cortisol (the stress hormone) and reported feeling lower
stress than
city dwellers. |
| 4. Nature has the ability to improve your sense of focus |
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It has been found that cities can have a negative influence on the
brain (according to a 2011 study).
One of the reasons this may be so
is due to the numerous amount of
stimuli you encounter in hectic
urban areas. Think about it - traffic,
coffee shops, not forgetting to mention the throngs of people. Such
distraction may impair the area
of the brain that controls your directed
attention and self-control.
But, there's an antidote: nature! The great
outdoors have been
shown to help with attention. A small 1990s study found that women who lived in Chicago apartments that overlooked a grassy area saw better improvements on basic attention.
| 5. It relieves depressive symptoms |
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And all it takes is a quick walk in the park, which, as a 2014 study
found, can do wonders for your mind. Walks through nature have a
plethora of mental health benefits, including that of decreasing
depression and alleviating moods... there is another perk to this
factor too. Walking in nature gives you the additional benefit of
exercise,
this too alleviates mental health issues.
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| 6. A walk in nature will prevent you from brooding |
Brooding is a mental state
that is familiar to most of us, whereby we cannot seem to stop thinking
about all the ways in which things are wrong with ourselves and in our
lives. In this study,
38 healthy
adult city dwellers first completed a questionnaire to
determine their normal level of brooding, then underwent a brain scan.
Half the volunteers were asked to walk for 90 minutes around a park or a
multi-lane highway. Upon their return, the volunteers repeated both
the
questionnaire and the brain scan, discovering that those who
walked
amid nature were no longer dwelling on the negative aspects
of their
life as much as they had before.
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7. A green space helps boost your creativity
Just looking at the color
green may help spark inventiveness! But
going into nature for an
extended period can have a remarkable
effect on creativity. In one particular study, participants took a
four- or six-day trip into the wilderness. The
study discovered that disconnecting from multimedia and technology
increases
performance on a creativity, problem-solving task by a full
50%.
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