Benefits
Sophie Monkman — 2023
Many of us understand intuitively that time in nature is good for us, quite simply because it feels good.
The scientific literature over the past four decades has been supporting this inclination with an ever-growing body of studies that demonstrate the wide array of health benefits from being in nature, as well as the benefits of a forest therapy practice.
As the studies are showing time and again, being in nature is an irrefutable form of preventive medicine.
The pace of modernity, with the stresses of everyday life, has resulted in our sympathetic nervous systems (fight, flight, freeze state) working on overdrive. With so much emphasis put on cognitive processes, and being stressed, many people suffer from over-stimulated minds and a dis-connect from the rest of their bodies, and therefore also from the simple sensory pleasures of life and the life around them.
During a forest therapy walk, our bodies are relaxed, and we ease into our parasympathetic nervous systems (rest and digest state). It is in this state that our bodies can truly rest, heal, and repair themselves.
“We evolved to find comfort in green, because for most of our evolutionary existence, we were surrounded by green. We are reassured by it on a very primitive level. Where there is green, there is water. And where there is water, there is food. When there is green around us, we can relax, knowing we won’t go hungry.”
Health benefits of connecting to nature:
Stress reduction (which is significant as chronic stress makes us more vulnerable to illness and disease)
Lowered blood pressure
Lowered heart rate
Decreased feelings of anxiety (such as eco-anxiety) and depression (see a 2021 study on this here)
Strengthened immune system (3-hour walk can boost immune system for up to 30 days; read below on phytoncides)
Accelerated recovery from illness and surgery
Improved sleep
Increased energy levels
Improved ability to focus (even in children with ADHD)
Improved memory, mental clarity, and cognition
Improved sense of well-being
For more articles, science, and resources about forest therapy and its health benefits, click here.
“Humans are tuned for relationship. The eyes, the skin, the tongue, ears, and nostrils—all are gates where our body receives the nourishment of otherness.
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Intentions of forest therapy
beyond personal wellness
Foster deep connections with, and heal our relationship with the more-than-human world
Cultural repair through nature and ecosystem repair
Practice decolonizing nature connection work
Inspire individuals to become caretakers of our earth (as Jacques Cousteau famously said, “People protect what they love”.)
In an accelerating, chaotic, and ever-changing world, this grounding and life-affirming work is deeply needed, especially in urban contexts, where the rift between humans and the more-than-human world can be acutely felt.
Phytoncides
There is now promising scientific research emerging that substantiates just why forest air feels so good to breathe.
Phytoncides — commonly known as pinenes or essential wood oils — are antimicrobial organic compounds released by coniferous trees, and some deciduous species.
These compounds are released when a tree detects a threat — such as an invasive beetle or fungus — and function as part of its immune system.
Since humans evolved alongside trees in close connection with nature for 99.99% of our evolution, our bodies respond to phytoncides in a similar way; by increasing our production of natural killer cells (white blood cells that attack virally infected cells) and strengthening our immune system.
To know more about the connection between phytoncides and natural killer cells, click here.
“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts.”