We Need Nature for Our Physical and Mental Well-being
I was recently watching a documentary on reindeer herders in Siberia. They guided their animals on a long, tough journey through Arctic conditions, spending cold nights outdoors – before eventually arriving at a small town where it turned out they had houses complete with bedrooms, bathrooms, and televisions. The presenter asked why they didn’t just stay in town, and one answered, “To live within four walls would be a prison sentence.”
“Aha!” I thought. “That fits my ideas for a Ming Pao Weekly column on our need to experience nature.” Not because I believe all Hongkongers should start herding animals in harsh environments, but because it echoes my view that we all need nature, and life in an utterly urban environment is like life in a prison for the soul.
I write this partly based on my own experience: city concerns seem to evaporate when I’m hiking up steep trails, soaking in scenery, trying to photograph butterflies and birds. But there’s also research showing that natural encounters help both our physical and mental well-being. The importance of the latter was emphasised by a recent survey by organisers of the Mental Health Month campaign, who found more than one-third of Hongkongers suffer from mental illness, perhaps because of the stress of city life.
For this column, I checked online information relating to health and the natural environment. There were of course references to the physical benefits of outdoor exercise like hiking, but I found there’s also evidence that being in nature, or even being amongst and seeing trees, is beneficial in itself. A review of studies assessing health effects of synthetic and natural environments concluded, “Natural environments may have direct and positive impacts on well-being.”
Earlier this year, Canadian researchers reported that people improve their working memory performance by about 16 percent after walking in nature. And in Scotland, a survey found that anything from a stroll in the park to a run through woodland can have a positive effect on people suffering from depression and anxiety. Plus, the positive effect on people's mental health was 50 per cent more than they might expect from going to the gym.
“That makes sense with what we thought we knew,” said study leader Professor Richard Mitchell of Glasgow University. “That is, the brain likes to be in the natural environment and it reacts to being there by turning down our stress response. Being in areas that have lots of trees and grassy areas help to calm us down.”
Country parks are within easy reach
I know parts of Hong Kong can seem far from anywhere natural. Yet this isn’t really true; it’s easy to reach places like the country parks on Hong Kong Island or just north of Kowloon. So why do Hongkongers pack the city even during leisure time?
There’s something about modern life – the lure of shopping malls, temptations of technology like online games and “chatting”. But also, to too many people, nature is perhaps a little scary: I’ve heard of Hong Kong kids who were afraid to sit on grass, seen teenagers frightened by butterflies. I asked one friend to go hiking, and she said no because, “It’s dirty.”
Dirty! Haha, there might be soil under grass and trees – but think a little when you’re in a gleaming mall: as someone coughs and sneezes, you could soon be breathing in their germs. During the SARs outbreak in 2003, many Hong Kong people thought exactly this; malls became way less popular, and crowds of people headed for the hills and coastlines.
The crowds flocking to country parks discovered what some Hong Kong people already knew: being outdoors here isn’t scary, the city is in an outstanding natural setting, and there’s a lot of things you can do – ranging from gentle walks, through photographing scenery and wildlife, to stream scrambling, kayaking, rock climbing and paragliding.
One legacy of SARS was surely increased participation in outdoor activities. Yet the city retains its lure, and the high rates of mental illness may partly reflect on brains disliking being continually in the concrete jungle.
I hope you’re among the people who regularly enjoy heading to the wilder parts of Hong Kong, and spending time in our few urban parks and green areas fringing the city. If not, perhaps try venturing out, see if there’s an activity that appeals and could become a rewarding long-term. You should find people willing to help you; you’ll meet new friends. And don’t just rely on the group visits, that are sometimes rushed – “Seeing flowers on horseback”; take your own time.
If you go out and enjoy the greener areas, perhaps also become involved in conservation efforts, help persuade planners that we don’t need ever more concrete development. Nature is not simply about protecting plants and animals – it’s also good for the soul, and vital for our society’s long-term well-being.
Version translated to Chinese [see below] appeared in Ming Pao Weekly on 27 October 2012.
Comments
青蔥翠綠大自然 身心健康不可缺
我最近看了一套關於西伯利亞牧鹿人的紀錄片,他們在北極的氣候環境中,引領著馴鹿走過艱辛漫長的行程,晚上都在嚴寒的野外露宿,最後來到一個小鎮。鎮上的小房子麻雀雖小、五臟俱全,舒適的臥室、浴室和電視機等設施一樣不缺。節目主持人問牧鹿人為什麼不就留在鎮上?其中一位牧鹿人答道:「居住在四面圍牆的環境,和在牢獄中服刑無異。」
答得真妙!這答案與我打算在《明周》專欄中所寫的,關於人們應當體驗大自然的想法實在非常吻合。我不是說所有香港人都應該在極地環境中展開放牧生活,而是想指出牧鹿人所說的與我的看法不謀而合:所有人都需要大自然,在一個完全城市化的環境中生活,就是讓心靈活在鐵窗之間。
我在此中的分享,部份源自本身經驗:當我在陡峭的山徑間遠足、沐浴於天然景致中、專注於捕捉蝴蝶與雀鳥的蹤影時,城市給我的憂慮似乎一掃而空。也有研究報告指出,接觸大自然有助我們保持身心健康。近期由精神健康月籌委會工作小組進行的調查指出,有三分之一的受訪港人精神健康指數偏低,這可能源自城市生活的壓力,顯示我們有需要正視身心健康的問題。
為了撰寫這個專欄,我在網上查閱了很多有關健康與接觸大自然環境的資料。除了找到遠足一類戶外活動有益身體的資料外,我也看到有證據指出身處大自然中,甚至只是在樹木之間和看到樹木,本身已有不少益處。一項評估人造與天然環境對健康所起作用的研究便得到以下結論:「天然環境可能對身心健康有著直接和正面的影響。」
本年較早時,加拿大研究員報告了人們在大自然中散步後,運作記憶表現提升約16%。蘇格蘭的另一項調查發現,任何像公園散步以至在樹林中跑步的活動,對於患有抑鬱及焦慮人士均能發揮正面作用。此外,大自然為人們精神健康帶來的正面效果,較健身室高出50%。
格拉斯哥大學的Richard Mitchell教授表示:「就我們已知資料而言,調查結果言之成理。大腦喜歡大自然的環境,所以身在大自然時便會自行壓抑本身的壓力反應。在種有大量草木的地方有助我們寧神靜心。」
我知道香港不少地方好像與大自然風馬牛不相及,但事實卻非如此。身處香港,我們很容易就可到達香港島和九龍北面的郊野公園。那麼,為什麼港人在閒暇時仍愛留在擠迫的市區?
現代生活中五光十色,這裡有購物商場的吸引力,網上世界更有線上遊戲和「聊天」等科技誘惑。大自然更令太多人望而生畏:我便聽說過香港的孩子害怕坐在草地上、年輕人看到蝴蝶會感到驚恐。我試過邀請朋友結伴遠足而遭婉拒,她的原因是:「髒死了」。
髒!草和樹下沒錯都是泥土,但試想一下,在清潔明亮的商場中,當有人咳嗽和打噴嚏時,訪客不是馬上就吸入他們的病菌嗎?在2003年沙士肆虐 期間,很多香港人就是這麼想,所以商場變得不受歡迎,人們轉投青山綠水的懷抱。
爭相前往郊野公園的人群,很快便發現部份港人早已知道的事情:郊外地方並不可怕,香港身處精彩有趣的天然環境,有很多活動等待我們發掘,例如散步、拍攝風景和野生動物,還有攀越溪澗、獨木舟、攀石和滑翔等。
沙士其中一個留給我們的改變,肯定是市民較以前多參與戶外活動。但香港的萬「誘」引力絲毫不減,市民精神健康指數偏低,部份反映了大腦並不喜歡長期活在石屎森林之中。
衷心希望你是其中一位喜歡定期前往郊野的香港人,且不時會在市內的公園和綠色地帶中享受閒適。假如你還未開始,不如試試出外作個小冒險,看看有沒有吸引你的活動,我相信這個發掘過程最終會為你帶來長遠的好處。你很容易便會遇上樂意幫助你的人、結交新的朋友。不要只參加走馬看花的本地團,大可嘗試隨心而行、慢慢享受。
如果你走出去之後變得嚮往山巒翠綠,不如也一同參與保育工作、幫助勸告城市規劃的官員,我們不需要更多的石屎工程。大自然不單包括保護動植物,它對我們的身心也具有莫大禆益,更是社會長遠健康不可或缺的部份。
Trees are good for your health!!!
From an article in the Atlantic:
When Trees Die, People Die
research links urban greenery to our wellbeing
From the European Centre for the Environment and Human Health:
Would you be happier living in a greener urban area?
look after green spots for safety and health and happiness
from the University of Queensland:
Green Cities Mean Healthier People
Removing trees can kill you
From PBS:
How Removing Trees Can Kill You
Creativity and health linked to contact with nature
From Nat Geographic interview with Richard Louv:
Connecting With Nature Boosts Creativity and Health
Richard Louv explains how society can overcome nature-deficit disorder
Gardening makes you happier
from realfarmacy website:
Read more at http://www.realfarmacy.com/science-shows-gardening-makes-you-happier-and...
More green space and lower housing density healthier
How town planning can make us thin and healthy: Architects show that more green space and less housing density has a clear effect on public health
Work smarter by spending time in nature
5 Scientifically Proven Ways to Work Smarter, Not Harder
Hiking boosts creative thinking
"A nice long hike, sans technology, can reduce mental fatigue, soothe the mind, and boost creative thinking."
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2016/04/08/doctors-explain-how-hikin...
Green spaces in UK hugely boost public health
http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-37403915
Attachment to nature key to environmental concern
http://www.yesmagazine.org/planet/how-to-raise-an-environmentalist