NATURE: HOW IT AIDS OUR MENTAL WELLBEING

Numerous studies have demonstrated the effects of nature on our cognitive abilities, with surprising results.

Interacting with nature relieves stress and restores our ability to focus. Research into the Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku (or forest bathing) has shown that the stress hormone significantly diminished in people who simply sat in a forest for 15 minutes and then wandered around it for another 15 minutes.

This hypothesis is backed up by the results obtained by a number of psychologists in Ohio: they assigned 76 university students the task of taking a ten-minute walk either in the woods next to a little river, or in an urban setting near concrete buildings and car parks, and then spend five minutes contemplating the landscape. The students who walked in the woods not only experienced more positive emotions, but they also showed a greater ability to focus and reflect than their colleagues assigned to the urban setting.

So what are you waiting for? Why don’t you try delving into nature at least once a week to alleviate stress and feel more positive and serene?