{"id":3672,"date":"2018-02-22T08:01:31","date_gmt":"2018-02-22T13:01:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.consumerhealthdigest.com\/blog\/\/?p=3672"},"modified":"2019-09-23T04:21:46","modified_gmt":"2019-09-23T09:21:46","slug":"green-spaces-and-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.consumerhealthdigest.com\/blog\/green-spaces-and-mental-health.html","title":{"rendered":"Green Spaces and Mental Health: Why Your Physical Environment Matters?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Green
\nThe places and spaces around us affect our happiness and health. Our physical environment that is experienced through each of our senses, can affect emotions and trigger the brain’s stress<\/a> or relaxation responses. Therefore, the places and spaces around us can either promote healing and well-being or be detrimental to our health. Not only does green space or a natural environment<\/a> improve mental and physical health<\/a>, but is essential for happiness and overall well-being. <\/p>\n

The physical surroundings in your home and in your workspace play a fundamental role in your happiness. Your space influences your mood and your outlook on a daily basis, not to mention your productivity. Your area plays a part in defining who you are and the emotions you feel.<\/p>\n

As humans, we are generally inclined to feel happy and at peace in nature. Many studies have shown that there is a relationship between green space and happiness. Some have turned their backs on nature and in turn lost their natural source of happiness. By increasing our time spent in nature we will be more likely to find permanent happiness and so much more.<\/p>\n

Scientific Evidence<\/h2>\n

A study done over 17 years ago, already discovered that people living in greener urban environments have lower levels of mental distress, and higher levels of well-being. These findings actually backed up a previous study that found that surgical patients recovered faster if they had a view of trees from their hospital beds. Another recent study proposed that a person’s welfare may be directly related to whether they are surrounded by urban green spaces. This study showed that residents tend to be happier if there are green spaces in their local environment. All this research suggests that contact with nature is very beneficial and leads to improvements in mood, cognition and health.<\/p>\n

It has been proven that nature assists in restoring the mind<\/a> from the mental fatigue of work or study. This, in turn, improves work performance and overall satisfaction. Urban nature such as parks provide calming and inspiring environments with boosts mental health. Besides this, green spaces provide areas for physical activity. Outdoor activities and exercise lead to better cognitive function, learning and memory. It also decreases the likelihood of stress, depression<\/a>, cancers, dementia and Alzheimer’s. Regular contact with nature is also very important for children because it aids in most aspects of development and can decrease the symptoms of ADHD<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Earthing\/ Grounding<\/h2>\n

\"Grounding\"
\nThere have been some recent studies that focussed on the concept of Earthing\/Grounding:<\/p>\n