Just 10 minutes in nature can help adults with mental illness, according to a new study that analyzed 30 years of previous research.
SciTechDaily reported on the paper, which found that a variety of exposures to nature, including spending time in urban parks or wilderness, camping, and gardening all make a difference.
It is estimated that one in five Americans experience mental illness, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. This research underscores the value of adding nature therapy to the mix when treating mental illness.
Studies have already shown the many benefits of nature — in fact, the new research relied on 45 previous papers that looked at the experiences of 1,492 adult participants.
Meanwhile, research has shown similar positive effects linked with time spent in nature among the broader population. For instance, researchers in China found that living near green spaces can improve mental health, and another study found that children who lived in neighborhoods with more green spaces were at reduced risk for mental disorders later in life.
In addition to mental wellbeing, time in nature has also been linked with better sleep, improved concentration, and a decrease of death from chronic disease. Green spaces even can be brought indoors for similar benefits — one study found that people's health improved after one month of exposure to indoor plants.
The good news is that people don't have to spend hours or days in nature to gain mental health benefits. The new study's researchers said that shorter outings in more accessible venues such as city parks can be valuable.
"Ten minutes in urban nature is far less intimidating, expensive, and time-consuming for people who do not have the time, resources, interest, community support or equipment to venture into the wilderness for days or weeks," they stated, per SciTechDaily.
Study co-author Dorothy Schmalz told the publication that the new research helps bridge an important gap in understanding.
"The relationship between nature and mental health is all over the place," she said. "The interventions vary from study to study, and the outcomes therefore are also all over the place. [This work] is an incredibly valuable contribution to understanding what this connection is."
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