Written by: Kenneth Hang
While most know it’s important to spend time outdoors, sometimes it's hard to resist the comfort of the indoors or even the world beyond our bed. No one can deny the warm embrace our bedsheets provide, but let’s be honest; We’re never getting up if we keep staying here! The list of benefits just being outside has on our mental health is quite long, and they’re especially important for kids. During the peak of the pandemic and even now, we all need the time outdoors when COVID-19 put us all to a halt, so hopefully this reminds and motivates you to get up and out more.
So what are the benefits and how can I get them?
What a question! The benefits of the outdoors are plentiful, and one big thing to note is that you don’t need to go out on an expedition through the forest every day to reap them. Just sitting under a tree or at a park is enough to boost your overall health greatly, and on days you may not be able to go out and about, having plants around the house or obtaining natural light with light boxes is a great option to bring the natural world indoors.
Going outdoors and having connections to nature helps to reduce our stress levels, strengthen memory, and improve focus, especially for those with ADHD. Nature does wonders to benefit us cognitively, but the emotional benefits are huge too. Those who spend time in nature have increased happiness, sense of meaning in life, and positive social interactions. Some studies even show that people are nicer and more generous just from seeing nature, through real life or videos, based on a study conducted by Carleton University.
Meditating outdoors is a great practice that can further accelerate your journey to better health! In another study conducted at the Mid-Atlantic Liberal Arts University, they found that meditating and being outside decreased total mood disturbance(feelings of anger, depression, fatigue, vigor, and confusion), and combining both greatly decreases it, bettering students mental health, particularly for those who don’t go outside as often. So next time you’re stressed and go outside, maybe a quick meditation session to your day will help!
Activities such as yoga/meditation outdoors can be put under ecotherapy, which, as you can guess, are nature-based programs aimed at improving mental health. Meditation, among other practices recommended under ecotherapy, are gardening/farming, forest bathing, animal-assisted therapy, and many others. Even though this field of psychology is still growing, the positive impact of nature on one's mental health is agreed upon by experts. Emphasized by Kaplan's research, he explains in his attentional restoration theory(ART) that when compared to natural environments,
“Urban environments suffer from an excess of bottom-up stimulation that serves to dramatically capture attention. People exposed to urban environments are forced to use their attention to overcome the effects of constant stimulation (described as hard fascination), and this in turn over time induces cognitive fatigue”(Pearson, 2014).
In comparison, natural environments offer soft fascination in Kaplan’s words, meaning that these scenes automatically catch our attention without being forced and also create pleasant feelings. Kaplan’s terms are similar to what we know as voluntary and involuntary attention, respectively defined as stimulus based on one's own choice versus a response to stimuli. Knowing this, nature helps us recover our depleted attention as opposed to urban environments that further drain us through our involuntary attention. We benefit from nature in a plethora of ways, and it’s important not to forget its impact just from being immersed in it.
Outdoors from Early Childhood to Young Adults
While we all benefit from nature, kids especially love to play outside, and this is something that school systems oftentimes fail to recognize or effectively execute. On top of a good education, playing outside in the natural environment is also vital in the developmental phases of childhood. The outdoors stimulates brain development, enhancing a child’s focus and cognitive abilities. This allows children to further accelerate their academic performances.
Though it’s important to go outdoors, the quality of the outdoor space is equally valuable in how well children will benefit from mother nature. While low-quality environments for kids to play in can cause repetitive playtime and an increase in bad behavior, a well-developed environment will create more constructive playtime. Most of us can guess the more basic standards, such as a minimum of 30 minutes of playtime and a size of at least 75 square feet, but other standards that people neglect range from the outdoor learning environment to the contents on the playground. Proposals ask that there be a minimum of two outdoor gross motor features, which can consist of climbing walls or a simple looping pathway for students that help further motivate them to engage in physical activity.
“The mere presence (with no additional programming) of an outdoor learning environment with natural features and a looping pathway is associated with a 22% increase in physical activity”(Cooper).
Adding a variety of different natural elements into the playground (shrubs, flowers, birdbaths, various ground surfaces such as pebbles, mulch, etc.) gives kids even more things to play with and learn about while letting their imaginations run wild while in the outdoor play area. One amazing natural element to add to the play environment is a garden. On top of letting kids watch and grow their own crops, kids who grow their own food are more likely to eat them, even continuing these healthy eating habits throughout their lives, so it’s a great way to help the more picky eater love their greens and fruits. These natural playgrounds even help raise spatial-cognitive awareness, emotional management, and socialization, so it’s important to facilitate quality play areas in schools for kids to experience all the things nature has to offer while having fun with it!
Besides the mental health benefits, outdoor playtime aids in a variety of physical benefits as well for the little ones! The expected benefits are that kids who play outdoors are usually fitter than those who stay indoors a lot, but things such as their motor fitness skills (coordination, balance, agility, etc.) are significantly improved along with eyesight. If given the time and opportunity, gardening can even improve a child's nutritional intake as they tend to be more likely to eat fruits and vegetables, on top of carrying on those dietary habits throughout their lives.
These benefits carry on and still apply to young adults, but for the rough patch that we call teenage years, there are benefits especially applicable to them in a generation where most people stay cooped up indoors. With the mental health crisis affecting a large body of the population and teenagers being a major group, the outdoors is a great alternative for those who can’t afford the price tag placed on medication or traditional therapy. Findings show that time outdoors can reduce anxiety, stress, and depression by lowering cortisol levels in our brains, which is known to be linked to stress.
“In one study, university students were sent into the forest for two nights. As a result, researchers found that they had lower levels of cortisol than those who spent those two nights in the city. However, spending time outdoors even in a city environment lowers cortisol”(Newport Academy).
As American teens are spending around 9 hours daily on average looking at their phone, the outdoors counteracts the negative effects that are associated with prolonged screen time(Lack of sleep, low self-esteem, etc.), regulating mood disturbances and nervous system arousal, as well as restoring mental fatigue caused by looking at technology all day. Out of all the age groups, kids and young adults benefit the most from spending time outdoors, starting at a young age where they can find long-term benefits that will hopefully continue to help them throughout their lives.
Trauma, hardships, and Nature's Healing
During crises that can cause trauma in many individuals, it can be hard to recover and get back up. Those dealing with mental health issues get trapped in their thoughts and own heads, and nature inspires a feeling in us that has been found to reduce levels of stress and bettering our mental state greatly: Awe.
“...awe — as opposed to joy, pride, amusement, contentment, and other positive emotions — is the singular sensation that goes the furthest in boosting one’s overall sense of well-being”(Anwar, 2018).
Similar to feelings of amazement and wonder, being in awe often can help improve overall well-being, while lowering inflammation and making people more generous and cooperative. Nature stirs feelings of awe in us and reminds us that we’re part of something bigger, which is a big factor in why being outdoors is so beneficial to our mental health and getting us out of our heads.
How much do feelings of awe affect Trauma though? People who’ve experienced trauma tend to assess their surroundings excessively for threats, so it’s hard to focus when your mind is constantly on high alert. This is due to the overactivity of the sympathetic nervous system(SNS), which is responsible for our survival instincts, while the parasympathetic nervous system(PNS) is the one that tells us that it's alright and we can let our guard down. Researchers have found that feelings of awe increase PNS activity, calming down our nerves and therefore can greatly reduce anxiety in people dealing with trauma. There are various things that can also inspire feelings of awe, such as music, but when asked, many people recall moments when in nature that gave them a sense of awe. A study conducted by Berkeley was able to further cement these claims. With the study including people who deal with post-traumatic stress disorder, participants would do outdoor activities together and found themselves more relaxed and less on edge afterward.
“Indeed, a week after river-rafting, study cohorts reported, on average, a 29 percent reduction in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, a 21 percent decrease in general stress, a 10 percent improvement in social relationships, a 9 percent improvement in life satisfaction and an 8 percent increase in happiness.”(Anwar, 2018).
In recent cases such as COVID-19, these events bring out the worst in everyone, shutting down big parts of our lives as we were stuck indoors. With most things being converted to digital spaces or postponed, taking time to go outside was one of the few but best things to do during the peak of the pandemic. Surveys sent to individuals from Iowa State University found that those who continued to be as active as possible outside during the pandemic had decreased levels of stress and higher positive mental health, regardless of the amount of physical activity done. With data and studies highlighting how beneficial it is to spend time outdoors during high-stress times like these, it calls to the government the need to implement programs and strategies for safe outdoor time for everyone. With COVID cases on the rise once again, never forget how much it can help to take some time out of your day to embrace the outdoors, even if it’s just for a minute standing on your front porch. As one of the many forms of life in nature, humans are no special exception to needing time in the great outdoors. If anything, we’re probably the ones who need it the most.
References
https://mhanational.org/surroundings/outdoors-nature
https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01178
https://www.psychreg.org/how-nature-can-help-heal-from-trauma/
https://news.berkeley.edu/2018/07/12/awe-nature-ptsd
Ibes, D. C., & Forestell, C. A. (2022). The role of campus greenspace and meditation on college students’ mood disturbance. Journal of American College Health, 70(1), 99–106.
Nature and the Outdoor Learning Environment: The Forgotten Resource in Early Childhood Education by Allen Cooper
Cindrich SL, Lansing JE, Brower CS, McDowell CP, Herring MP, Meyer JD. Associations Between Change in Outside Time Pre- and Post-COVID-19 Public Health Restrictions and Mental Health: Brief Research Report. Front Public Health. 2021 Jan 26;9:619129. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.619129. PMID: 33585393; PMCID: PMC7874172.
Pearson, D. G., & Craig, T. (2014). The great outdoors? Exploring the mental health benefits of natural environments. Frontiers in Psychology, 5.