The power of nature: how green spaces and outdoor activity impact mental health
By Eleanor Barnes, First Year, English
Environmental surroundings can often change our outlook on a situation: the weather, the view, and the architecture can all play a part in how well we respond to something. So, can they also affect our mental health?
Mental health is an ever prevalent issue with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) saying that in early 2021, around 21% of adults experienced moderate to severe depressive symptoms in Great Britain. There is still so much mystery surrounding how mental health can be improved. We may suggest a walk in the park to our friends if they are struggling to try to break the often cyclical nature of depression. We all know of the theorised link between improved mental health and time spent outdoors, but what evidence is there to support these preconceived ideas?
Well, according to Rebecca Geary at ‘The Lancet Planetary Health’, if you have taken yourself to a green space when feeling low you have been doing the right thing. In their 2023 study, they observed 2.3 million adults in the United Kingdom across 10 years to assess how green or blue spaces influenced mental health. Three factors were considered for each participant: the density of vegetation within a 300m radius of their home (individual ambient greenness), access to green spaces and the diagnoses and symptoms of common mental disorders (CMD).
On ambient greenness, the study found that with every 10% increase in vegetation density, the likelihood of developing common mental disorder symptoms decreased by 20%. Similarly, increasing green space access correlated with lower odds of symptoms as for every 360m further an individual lived from an accessible greenspace, their likelihood of symptoms increased by 5%. Therefore, this study gives us reason to believe we can reduce the intensity of symptoms by being around lush vegetation which I think can only be seen as a win-win situation.
But is it just the green spaces that make a difference or that people who are more physically active and who exercise outdoors naturally reduce poor mental health days? You always hear about a runner’s high and the intense boost of happiness it brings, so is it just an association with exercise that brings this perceived reduction in symptoms?
Physical exercise can alleviate signs of depression and anxiety through the release of endorphins and other neurochemicals. Sammi Chekroud studied 1.2 million people in the USA and the effect exercise had on mental health disorders like depression, PTSD, and anxiety between 2011 and 2015. Physically active individuals had an average of 43% fewer poor mental health days or months than the physically inactive. Even if it is just physical activity that creates the desired effect on the brain, it seems green spaces have still encouraged exercise to be achieved and so there is still a correlation between green spaces and achieving the daily recommended amount of exercise.
Oliver Mytton and his team published research in Health & Place, 2012) which found the greenest 20% of England are 27% more likely to reach the UK recommended weekly physical activity amount than the least green quintile. I feel this emphasises how increasingly important it is to weave green spaces into major cities to improve psychological well-being.
You will find it no surprise that cities with more abundant green spaces report a higher quality of mood and living. Research by The European Centre for Environment and Human Health (ECEHH) has shown that there is significantly lower mental distress and higher life satisfaction. Their data was taken from a longitudinal survey of 5,000 households (10,000 individuals) in the United Kingdom that ran every year from 1991 to 2008. The ECEHH conclude that urbanisation is a potential threat to the future of mental health, this could be potentially due to the disconnect from nature. When there is such a simple change that can provide a major beneficial stimulus to our psyche it is crazy we don’t take the initiative to incorporate green spaces more.
Living in Bristol we are lucky enough to have access to so many green spaces dispersed throughout the city. Given the research, we shouldn’t be taking this for granted. We should appreciate the beautiful parks and gardens we are lucky enough to have right on our doorstep!
When you find yourself with an empty evening get yourself immersed in nature, it may have more of a benefit than you initially realised. The heights of the Clifton Suspension Bridge give an amazing panoramic view of Bristol, or maybe you could visit Brandon Hill a popular picnic spot with a wide expanse of hills and greenery, the Royal Fort Gardens are perfect for a breath of fresh air between lectures or revision sessions as it is close to many study spaces in the university, and finally, you could even sit in Castle Park if you prefer to sit by water which offers a quiet urban retreat in the centre of the city.
Importantly, if you find yourself struggling with worsening mental health the University of Bristol offers students short-term individual counselling that you can request through their website.