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'Forest Bathing' Considered Healthful

Posted by kdawson on from the just-like-your-mother-told-you-except-for-the-ticks dept.

Hugh Pickens writes "The NY Times reports that although allergies and the promise of air-conditioning tend to drive people indoors at this time of year, when people spend time in more natural surroundings — forests, parks, and other places with plenty of trees — they experience increased immune function. A study of 280 healthy people in Japan, where visiting nature parks for therapeutic effect has become a popular practice called 'Shinrin-yoku,' or 'forest bathing,' found that being among plants produced 'lower concentrations of cortisol, lower pulse rate, and lower blood pressure,' among other things. Another study in 2007 showed that men who took two-hour walks in a forest over two days had a 50-percent spike in levels of natural killer cells, and a third study found an increase in white blood cells that lasted for a week in women exposed to phytoncides in forest air."

5 of 252 comments (clear)

  1. Am I the only one? by Polarina · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Am I the only one that read the title as "'Forest Bathing' Considered Harmful"?

  2. Breaking news by NekSnappa · · Score: 4, Insightful

    People who get off their ass and go outside are healthier than those who don't.

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    I want to shoot the messenger!
    1. Re:Breaking news by augi01 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      In conjunction with this rather astonishing remark, it may also be the case that walking in the forest removes one from an environment associated with many stressful things, i.e. work, school, etc, thereby decreasing their overall stress level. A healthy mind is just as important as a healthy body.

      --
      No yesterday, no tomorrow, and no today.
  3. What this article really says.... by rainmouse · · Score: 4, Insightful

    What this article really seems to be saying is that living in towns and cities is harmful and that hanging out in parks and forests temporarily alleviates the symptoms.

  4. Re:Duh by Gulthek · · Score: 4, Insightful

    My wife grew up surrounded by animals and has extremely bad allergies. She didn't know what it was like to breathe normally until she moved into her first apartment that had always been animal-free.

    Anecdotal evidence is anecdotal.