You really should get out more
As new studies prove the power of nature for mind and body, Sophie Qureshi explores exactly what puts the great in the great outdoors…
‘imagine a therapy that had no known side effects, was readily available and could improve your cognitive functioning at zero cost.’ That was the attention-grabbing opening to an academic paper written over a decade ago. The therapy in question? Spending time in nature. But we clearly haven’t caught on because, according to a new study*, 50% of us haven’t walked in the countryside or even visited a park in the last six months, and one in 10 of us only manages five minutes or less outside a day. In fact, another study estimates that on average we now spend 22 hours a day indoors – which, over a lifetime, equates to more than 75 years.
Wild thing
And yet, a host of scientific studies now confirm what we’ve always instinctively known: nature is good for our mental, emotional and even physical well-being. One study from Japan found that spending time in the forest reduced levels of the stress hormone cortisol by 12.4%. Another, from Michigan University, found that short-term memory improved by 20% after taking a walk among trees. And it wasn’t just the exercise that sharpened the mind – subjects who were sent for a walk down a busy city street didn’t experience the same improvement.
So what is it about being immersed in nature that allows our minds to unwind and reboot? Experts theorise that nature allows us to replenish our psychological ‘batteries’ by encouraging us to use a different form of attention. ‘We have a limited capacity to focus our attention on complex tasks,’ says Dr Stephanie Wilkie, environmental psychologist at the University of Sunderland. ‘This is referred to as “directed attention” and it’s depleted the more you use it.’ Anything that requires you to concentrate and block out unwanted stimuli demands directed attention – whether that’s navigating busy streets or writing a report in a noisy office. ‘Nature, on the other hand, evokes a different kind of attention, called “involuntary attention”,’ says Wilkie. ‘This is what you use when you notice something interesting on a walk, or listen to birdsong or look at trees. You don’t need to concentrate, it just effortlessly engages your interest, giving your directed attention a chance to
rest up and replenish.’ In fact, so powerful is nature’s effect on the mind, we’re starting to see what Wilkie terms ‘nature prescriptions’ to help treat depression and anxiety.
NATURAL HIGH
So how long do you need to spend outdoors to reap the rewards? There’s no official guideline equivalent to, say, your five-a-day of fruit and veg, but new research suggests two hours in nature a week significantly boosts health and well-being. It can be two hours in one go or in short bursts, and you don’t have to head to a rural idyll. ‘Even time in a small urban park can bring rapid improvements to mood, fatigue, stress and concentration,’ says Wilkie. That said, there is some evidence that biodiversity makes a difference and spending time in an area of outstanding natural beauty is even more effective in reducing stress.
To build more outdoor time into your week, start small, advises Hana Sutch, co-founder of Go Jauntly, a free communitybased walking app designed to help city dwellers connect with nature. ‘Reclaim your lunchtime and go for a walk in the park, or beat the afternoon slump by having walking meetings. At the weekend, plan an outside adventure – you can use Go Jauntly to find walks further afield and make a day of it.’ Rather than plugging into a podcast, try one of the walks the app has created with beauty brand Liz Earle, which feature audio guides from ethnobotanist James Wong, who points out plants and flowers along the way.
INTO THE WOODS
Swapping your gym membership for outdoor classes will also pay dividends. ‘Exercising in nature has been reported by participants in a range of trials to feel easier than gym sessions, despite often burning more calories,’ says Wong. ‘Plus, evidence has shown that exercise in green spaces results in an overall better mood than the same run on a treadmill.’
But you don’t have to do a workout to benefit from nature’s restorative powers. Research into the Japanese practice of ‘shinrin-yoku’ or ‘forest bathing’ – essentially a leisurely visit to a forest – suggests that all sorts of psycho-physiological benefits can be gained just from spending time in a natural setting. As well as reducing stress, improving mood and encouraging creativity, spending time in a forest has been shown to boost your immune system. This is because plants emit airborne chemicals called ‘phytoncides’, which we breathe in. These have been proven to enhance the activity of natural ‘killer cells’ that help our bodies fight disease. So forget bubble baths and candles – if you’re running on empty, forest bathing is the perfect pick-me-up.
STAND YOUR GROUND
While we can all get behind the idea of a woodland walk, a slightly wackier-sounding practice – ‘earthing’ – is becoming the next big thing in wellness. Also known as ‘grounding’, it involves standing or walking barefoot to benefit from the earth’s electrical charge. All a bit woo-woo? Actually, no – research has shown that barefoot contact with the earth can help improve sleep, lower stress and reduce pain and muscle tension. ‘When your bare feet come into contact with the earth, free electrons from the earth’s negatively charged surface are taken up into the body,’ says Jenya Di Pierro, naturopath and founder of London wellness club Cloud Twelve. ‘These electrons are effectively nature’s biggest antioxidants and help neutralise damaging excess free radicals that can lead to inflammation and disease.
‘Throughout history, humans walked, sat and slept on the ground, so they spent a lot of their time naturally “grounded”. But today we have become increasingly disconnected from the earth – conductive, leather-soled shoes have been replaced by insulated rubber and plastics. Carpets, synthetic fabrics, asphalt, tar and vinyl all block the earth’s natural charge too. We are also bathed in a sea of man-made electronic radiation from household appliances, mobile phones, Wi-fi and cell towers, which bombard us with free-radical damage to our tissues and cells. The earth’s energy helps neutralise this, so that your body can heal naturally, as it is meant to.’
Experts recommend earthing daily – just stand, walk or lie on any kind of grass, earth or sand for 30 minutes. Even if you don’t have that long, it’s still worth doing, says Di Pierro. ‘If you think of an electrical appliance in the event of a short circuit, it can be grounded in milliseconds, so I think any time spent barefoot will benefit the body.’ Time to kick off your heels, then – and head outside.