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Mental health has been shown to have a strong link to the amount of time we spend in nature. Spending time in nature like forest bathing has been shown to be mentally and physically restorative in nature, according to a study.
Forest bathing is the practice of intentionally walking slowly through a forest or woods while immersing in the environment and simultaneously using the five senses mindfully.
Forest bathing, also known as Shinrin Yoku, gained popularity in the 1980s. It was promoted by the Japanese government for its various physical benefits such as improved immunity, reduced blood pressure, lowered production of stress hormones, and improved overall well-being.
Forest bathing has gained popularity worldwide as it is an eco-friendly and healthy alternative to our regular lives which are filled with stressors and a gadget-dominated world. Modern life involves living in a world with very little natural exposure to nature, which causes a plethora of physical and mental health problems.
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In modern living and work settings, a significant amount of time is spent indoors, and this trend is against our instinctive drive to spend time in nature.
This is why doctors and governmental boards have started recommending spending time in nature, including forest bathing, as a therapeutic approach to improve mental health and overall quality of life.
How Does Forest Bathing Restore Mental Health?
Forest bathing is undertaken with a purposeful intent of shutting out stressors of daily living, such as work-related pressure, relationship issues, social media overwhelm, and so on. It is also meant to move away from pollution that causes somato-sensory problems.
Let’s see how forest bathing works to improve our mental health.
1. Reduces Stress and Anxiety
The main mental health benefit of forest bathing is the relief from longstanding stress. Chronic stress has been shown to adversely affect the parasympathetic nervous system, but forest bathing can reverse this process.
Forest bathing has been shown to mediate the automatic response to stressful situations through the "fight or flight" response. The parasympathetic nervous system relaxes the body by reducing the production of stress hormones. Thus, forest bathing helps people reduce their stress levels by increasing their interaction with nature.
2. Increases Immunity
Phytoncides are chemicals emitted by plants and trees to protect from insects and germs. Exposure to phytoncides is also beneficial for human beings as it boosts immunity.
By breathing in forest air, we take in the phytoncides, which increases the number of natural killer (NK) cells in our blood. Increase in NK cell activity has been shown to offer protection from viral infections and some cancers.
3. Enhances Mindfulness
Practicing mindfulness has a restorative effect on mental health, and forest bathing can provide an alternative setting for the practice. Forest bathing allows people to focus on the present moment, suspend judgment on their thoughts, and absorb information through all their senses.
Walking through the forest and focusing on the wilderness means people spend less time on social media and using technology.
Forest bathing also facilitates the mind to rest, appreciate the surroundings, and emerge recharged. It also controls obsessive thinking, worrying, and rumination.
4. Improves Mood and Attention
As spending time in nature lowers hypertension and the production of stress hormones, the result is an improvement in the overall mood. Taking time out in the woods also reduces anxiety, depression, and confusion because we learn to slow down and focus on just one task.
Forest bathing counters the constant clatter due to our current lifestyle and restores calmness that improves our cognitive abilities. It allows us to shift our focus to trees, plants, and wildlife around, which reduces attention fatigue and controls impulsiveness.
5. Enhances Physical Fitness
Our mental health is closely connected to our physical health and things that improve the latter usually tend to improve the former. Forest bathing has been proven to have several benefits to a person's physical health, which in turn is capable of improving their mental health.
Forest bathing provides significant benefits to the cardiovascular system as it does a good job of regulating the heart rate to optimal levels. It improves immunity as a result of the increase in the number of natural killer cells as well as vitamin D levels which offers protection from infections and some types of cancers.
Forest bathing has been found to lower blood glucose in type 2 diabetics and provide relief for those suffering from chronic pain. It also improves the amount and quality of sleep a person receives on a regular basis.
Forest bathing is a powerful yet underrated wellness tool capable of significantly improving one's mental health and well-being. It is a simple and relaxed approach to improving mental health and should be used more often by more people. However, it needs to be undertaken with proper medical guidance and logistical supervision. No one should be allowed to self-journey into dangerous woodland areas without adequate preparation and support.
