Did you know that nature has healing powers? By simply visiting a park, a beautiful garden, lounging by a peaceful lake, or cruising down a tree-lined trail, being in any of these natural environments has a positive impact on your physical health. And this is vitally important for individuals who live in urban areas. How and why? Let’s take a deep dive.

Increased physical activity

First, you are more likely to move when you are in nature’s space. When an individual is visiting a park or exploring a trail, they are more likely to move, and movement is key to our physical bodies. This type of movement can include biking, running, or walking. When we are moving, we are assisting our body with lowering blood pressure, and when our bodies experience a lower blood pressure, this in turn helps to reduce the risk of stroke, heart disease, and heart attack – now that is healing power.

And it’s not only that if you are visiting a park that you are more likely to be physically active, as well as if you live within a one-mile radius (1.6km) of a park, you’re likely by over 30% to participate in a physical activity.

This was shown in Cohen et al.1, a research study which found that “those who lived within the one-mile radius were four times more likely to visit the park and had 38% more exercise sessions per week than those who were living outside of the radius” (p. 509). Movement is important, and we need to ensure that when we are physically moving that we are breathing well, and nature assists with our respiratory health too.

Better respiratory health

Respiratory health can be a challenge in urban areas due to air pollution. If you live in an urban centre, you are likely to be exposed to more air pollution compared to if you lived in the suburbs or a rural area. This air pollution is often from gas from vehicle exhaust and industrial activity. Air pollution can have a significant impact on your health, especially on your respiratory health. Are you sitting near a plant as you are reading this? Or maybe you are outside sitting on a park bench close to a lovely mature tree, which is providing shade for you? Now, take in a deep breath – as you are breathing in this air, you are breathing in air which has had some purification from nature. This is because the surfaces of plants and leaves help to absorb air pollution!

These pollutants include sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and carbon monoxid,e to name a few. For sulfur dioxide, leaves can absorb this harmful pollutant, and then after absorption, the pollutant will be converted to less harmful substances. For pollutants, like nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide, leaves of both plants and trees absorb these pollutants. Through the process of stomata, the leaves help purify air in urban areas by absorbing gases like carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and releasing oxygen while regulating water loss (Ryu, Lee, & Kim2). In addition, other ways that nature helps to purify air pollutants are by trapping pollutants in the bark of trees and leaves, and this then prevents these particles from getting into our lungs, which allows us to breathe easier, have ra eduction in asthma symptoms, and less risk of respiratory conditions.

Nature and stress relief

We are all experiencing times of stress in our lives, or experiencing the feeling of being overwhelmed. This could be due to a personal problem with a relationship with your partner, spouse, or friend. Perhaps you feel like this person hasn’t been supportive of you during a difficult time. Or you may feel like others have not shown interest in your personal thoughts or opinions. You may be experiencing a lot of stress due to a work project and feeling stuck, unsure of how to find a solution to the work project.

When individuals are experiencing stress in their personal lives, it is often helpful to take a break and to step away from these stressful situations. If you live in the city and need to take a break from a stressor, consider taking a break at a park or visiting a public garden. When we are in nature, it helps our brain transition from being in a “fight or flight” stage to a calm state. Which then results in our body experiencing a slower heart rate, reduced muscle tension, and deep breathing. Studies have shown, including the research study by Hunter et al.3, that by just being in nature for only 20 – 30 minutes (this could be during a lunch break) it can drastically reduce cortisol, and cortisol is the hormone that drives stress.

Being in these atmospheres provides an opportunity to process and reset. Consider taking a walk by the lake or oceanfront, or walking down a tree-lined trail. By simply being in these environments and listening to the relaxing sound of the lake, seeing the vibrant colours of a garden, watching the movement of the branches and leaves on trees - all these beautiful gifts from nature help to soothe and calm your nervous system.

References

1 Contribution of Public Parks to Physical Activity, Cohen, D. A., McKenzie, T. L., Sehgal, A., Williamson, S., Gianelli, D., & Lurie, N. (2007) on American Journal of Public Health.
2 Forces and motion associated with arboricultural climbing, Ryu, J., Lee, S., & Kim, H. (2021) on ScienceDirect.
3 Urban Nature Experiences Reduce Stress in the Context of Daily Life Based on Salivary Biomarkers, Hunter, M. R., Gillespie, B. W., & Chen, S. Y.-P. on Frontiers in Psychology.