Outdoor play key to mental health
Children today are more likely to report symptoms of attention disorders and depression, and more likely to be medicated for those problems than at any time in human history, according author Richard Louv.
Mental health issues, childhood obesity and even online bullying appear to be exacerbated by a lack of access to nature, outdoor play and urban green space, said Louv, who will be a keynote speaker at the Children and Nature Network International Conference in Vancouver April 18 to 21.
Thirty years ago, there was no more than a handful of studies on the restorative effects of natural environments on children.
Today, there are more than 500 and their conclusions are spectacularly well-aligned, said Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods and Vitamin N: The Essential Guide to a Nature-Rich Life.
It might be over-extrapolating the research to draw a causal link between nature deprivation and the deteriorating mental and physical health of our children, but the research consistently shows restorative effects when children have improved access to nature, he said.
Louv will join 850 delegates from 22 countries for a series of speakers and workshops at the Westin Bayshore organized by the Children and Nature Network and the Canadian Wildlife Federation.
A series of studies from the University of Illinois have found that playtime in green, outdoor spaces foster creative play and reduce symptoms of attention disorders. And the greener and wilder the environment, the stronger the effect.
In recognition of the potent effect nature has on the mental health of children, doctors with a Portland, Ore., pilot program are writing “park prescriptions” to regulate exposure to the natural environment as part of a longitudinal study on mental health.
“We are genetically wired to be in nature,” said Louv. “When you lose something that is so central to human existence, of course you aren’t going to do so well.”
He notes that Harvard University Prof. Edward O. Wilson says that humans are innately attracted to nature — what he calls biophilia — and that we need experiences in nature for our psychological, physical and spiritual heath.
“I hear the same story from teachers everywhere I go, that the biggest troublemaker in the classroom becomes a leader when you get them into the woods, not just better-behaved, but a leader,” said Louv.