We’ve Become Too Disconnected From Nature
Our human experience in the concrete jungle is drastically different from what it is in a tranquil forest. Stress & anxiety are the norm in today’s society – especially post-pandemic, where the lingering tension of that strange time continues to haunt & plague so many of us. Interestingly enough, the key to recovering our mental health may have been growing beside us since the inception of time.
How far have we strayed from nature?
I had a patient come in this past week; she asked me, “Have you ever heard about Forest Bathing?”. I’m a suburban kid from Memphis, Tennessee; didn’t come across too many forests to bathe in! She spoke at length to a video she’d seen about the various health benefits of being immersed in nature -- the antidepressant effects we’d get from a walk in the woods, a mysterious high achieved from inhaling the special chemicals that the trees release… Obviously amazing claims! I actively try to find value in everything my patients share with me; so, of course I spent the rest of the day doing my research!
Back into the woods; let’s dive into the literature on forest bathing!
Shinrin-yoku, a Japanese term describing a leisurely trip into the forest -- literally translating to “forest bath”, it speaks to what is both a hot fitness trend & a calming mental health exercise. It seems intuitive that taking a walk in the forest would be good for us. We get a break from the daily rat race & we get to enjoy the beauty of the colorful trees & singing birds.
Through research, we have been able to objectively outline the many psychological & physiological benefits that our forests have to offer.
According to the work of Dr. Qing Li,
“A forest bathing trip involves visiting a forest for relaxation and recreation while breathing in volatile substances, called phytoncides, which are antimicrobial volatile organic compounds derived from trees.”
In his research, Ling goes on to highlight how phytoncides increase the activity of human natural killer (NK) cells which have been shown to be critical to our immune function -- destroying cells infected by viruses & tumors. Ling’s group also found that the tree chemicals lead to significant decreases in the blood concentrations of adrenaline & noradrenaline, two of our bodies primary stress hormones!
Diagram of Forest Bathing’s effect on NK activity // Qing Li, 2010
Other studies have gone on to further highlight forest bathing’s positive effects, including: significantly reduced cortisol levels (Antonelli et. al, 2019), lower systolic & diastolic blood pressure (Yau & Loke, 2020), and increased parasympathetic, rest & relaxation, nerve activity (Park et. al, 2010)! These effects that have been shown to be sustainable for multiple weeks (Roviello et. al, 2022)!
“Two hours of forest walking during a single visit or 4 hours of a forest therapy program had physiologically and psychologically relaxing effects on middle-aged adults with elevated blood pressure”
The verdict is in – spending time outside is really good for you!
Shocker!
Hindsight is 20/20, but research like this makes certain government policies during peak pandemic look extremely misguided! It seems odd that anyone would ever recommend locking yourself in your house for days on end, but that’s exactly what we saw! Even more strangely, some of us are still doing it today – no wonder our country’s seeing such a mental health crisis!
Let’s get back to our roots! Go outside; get a breath of fresh air! We’ve all been prescribed the world’s most conservative treatment — a walk in the park!
Works Cited & Further Reading
Li Q. (2010). Effect of forest bathing trips on human immune function. Environmental health and preventive medicine, 15(1), 9–17. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12199-008-0068-3
Li, Q., Morimoto, K., Kobayashi, M., Inagaki, H., Katsumata, M., Hirata, Y., Hirata, K., Suzuki, H., Li, Y. J., Wakayama, Y., Kawada, T., Park, B. J., Ohira, T., Matsui, N., Kagawa, T., Miyazaki, Y., & Krensky, A. M. (2008). Visiting a forest, but not a city, increases human natural killer activity and expression of anti-cancer proteins. International journal of immunopathology and pharmacology, 21(1), 117–127. https://doi.org/10.1177/039463200802100113
Antonelli, M., Barbieri, G., & Donelli, D. (2019). Effects of forest bathing (shinrin-yoku) on levels of cortisol as a stress biomarker: a systematic review and meta-analysis. International journal of biometeorology, 63(8), 1117–1134. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-019-01717-x
Yau, K. K., & Loke, A. Y. (2020). Effects of forest bathing on pre-hypertensive and hypertensive adults: a review of the literature. Environmental health and preventive medicine, 25(1), 23. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12199-020-00856-7\
Park, B. J., Tsunetsugu, Y., Kasetani, T., Kagawa, T., & Miyazaki, Y. (2010). The physiological effects of Shinrin-yoku (taking in the forest atmosphere or forest bathing): evidence from field experiments in 24 forests across Japan. Environmental health and preventive medicine, 15(1), 18–26. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12199-009-0086-9
Roviello, V., Gilhen-Baker, M., Vicidomini, C., & Roviello, G. N. (2022). Forest-bathing and physical activity as weapons against COVID-19: a review. Environmental chemistry letters, 20(1), 131–140. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-021-01321-9
