Blue Spaces Help Mental Health

It’s not just green spaces (land with grass, trees, or other vegetation) that are good for your mental health. Blue spaces (areas near bodies of water, such as oceans, rivers, or lakes) are also associated with enhanced well-being and reduced psychological distress. In particular, according to a recent analysis of data from 26,000 people, those who lived less than half a mile from a coast were significantly less likely to suffer from a common mental disorder (such as anxiety or depression) than those who lived more than 30 miles away from one. The difference was most pronounced for those in the lowestincome households.