By Allison Ludlow ’24
Photos by Rob Cardillo

In a conversation with behavioral scientist Dietlinde Heilmayer, former assistant professor of psychology at Moravian, she said, “Think about your busy day and all the decisions you need to make and all you need to do, then think about going for a walk in the mountains or sitting on a quiet bench in a forest. These experiences will probably help the brain and body relax.” Many studies show that finding respite in nature soothes our overactive minds and helps us manage the stress of our lives.

The practice of shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing, which originated in Japan, is the experience of walking in a forest while taking in the surrounding environment. Research connects forest bathing to lower levels of stress hormones and decreased heart rate and blood pressure. Conversely, spending time in the streetscapes of high-density urban environments induces perceived oppressiveness and mental stress.

Chronic stress can cause a cascade of health issues. Stress initiates brain processes that bring on our fight-or-flight response, readying the body to battle a threat or flee from it. Adrenaline is released into the blood, raising heart rate and blood pressure to move blood quickly to muscles and organs throughout the body. Blood sugar and fats are released into the circulatory system to provide energy. Following the burst of adrenaline, cortisol—aka the stress hormone—is released into the bloodstream to keep the body on alert.

This physiological response to stress is a healthy one, but over a prolonged period of time, these hormonal stress responses can raise blood pressure, damage blood vessels, and even contribute to the accumulation of fat, leading to weight gain. Such physiological effects increase the risk for heart attacks and strokes. A 2004 study involving 24,767 people from 52 countries found that, after adjusting for other risk factors, mental stress was associated with a more than twofold increase in risk of heart attack.

Stress also weakens our immune systems, making us more vulnerable to disease, including cancer. When we spend time in nature, we inhale plant-emitted compounds called phytoncides, which help lower stress and induce relaxation. “In addition, phytoncides cause our bodies to synthesize more natural killer (NK) white blood cells, which attack tumor cells, viruses, and other disease-causing microbes,” says Joshua McSparin, certified mindfulness-based ecotherapist and assistant director of the Moravian University Counseling Center.

Engaging in the natural world appears to have a positive impact not only on our physical health but also on our psychological health. A team of researchers from several countries who reviewed studies for the article “Nature and Mental Health: An Ecosystem Service Perspective” in the journal Science reported consensus around nature experience and a lower incidence of depression, anxiety, and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder—mental health issues that are becoming increasingly pervasive.

For a study published in 2018, researchers at Aarhus University in Denmark examined the mental outcomes of more than 900,000 people across the country who were born between 1985 and 2003. Using satellite images to view the green space surrounding those individuals from 1985 to 2013 and data on their mental health throughout those years, the researchers determined that a greater exposure to green space in childhood was associated with a lower risk of developing any of a variety of psychiatric disorders later in life.

Beyond the physical and psychological health benefits rendered, connecting with nature improves our mental sharpness and creativity. Cognitive function, our ability to think, depends on how well we can focus and process information. For many of us, the heavy mental demands of work and media overload lead to what’s called “busy brain,” which creates mental fatigue. But research suggests that even brief engagements with nature can calm our busy brains, thereby sharpening our working memory, renewing our attentional control, and improving our mental mobility (the ability to switch between different mental tasks). A 2022 study involving 50 university students found that just 10 minutes walking or sitting in the grassy, tree-lined campus quad significantly improved cognitive performance.

Younger students also benefit intellectually by engaging with nature. A 12-month study by Payam Dadvand and colleagues at the Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemidology in Barcelona, Spain, involving 2,593 schoolchildren in grades 2 through 4, found a positive association between spending time outdoors in green spaces and enhanced memory and attentiveness.

Listening to nature may also improve thinking. Researchers at the University of Chicago asked one group of study participants to listen to nature soundscapes such as birdsong and ocean waves. A second group listened to urban sounds, including traffic and coffee shop noise. Those who were exposed to the sounds of nature improved their performance on cognitive tests, while no improvement in cognition was demonstrated by the participants who listened to urban sounds.

One theory for the cognitive benefits of engagement with nature is that stress reduction allows us to maintain high levels of sustained attention. A second theory suggests that as nature captures our attention it allows the self-directed attention we would use in cognitive tasks to be replenished.

Ruth Ann Atchley, of the University of Kansas, and colleagues wanted to explore whether nature influences higher-level mental processes such as creative problem solving. For their study, they enlisted 56 adult Outward Bound participants, assigned them to groups, and sent them off—no technology allowed—on four-day backpacking trips. Testing showed a 50 percent increase in creative problem solving.

The researchers think these results may have been driven by the immersion in nature along with the absence of technology. As with the association between exposure to nature and improvements in memory and attention, the researchers theorize that the relaxation, positive emotion, and “soft fascination” achieved during time spent in natural environments allows our brains to replenish.

Their second theory posits that, “Exposure to nature may also engage what has been termed the ‘default mode’ networks of the brain, which an emerging literature suggests may be important for peak psychosocial health. The default mode network is a set of brain areas that are active during restful introspection and that have been implicated in efficient performance on tasks requiring frontal lobe function such as divergent thinking. ... On a hike or during exposure to natural stimuli which produce soft fascination, the mind may be more able to enter a state of introspection and mind wandering which can engage the default mode.”

Viewing a sunset or sunrise, listening to birdsong, dipping your feet into a cool stream, trekking through the woods, catching sight of wildflowers in a meadow, walking the beach, taking in the view from a park bench…these experiences relieve stress, but they also raise our feelings of happiness and well-being, according to researchers who have collected lots of data from individuals who spend time with and around nature.

There is growing evidence to suggest that when we are regularly exposed to nature either in person or through visual media, we experience immediate joy but also display feelings of long-term happiness and kindness toward ourselves and others.

Social connection is an essential part of our well-being and has been found to be a factor in our longevity. Spending time in nature, whether in a neighborhood or national park, can bring you together with other individuals who share your interests. Many places hold cultural significance, connecting people with the land they inhabit and allowing them to engage with their heritage. The shared sense of belonging and inclusion that nature promotes is not only necessary to create feelings of fulfillment but also incorporates collective experiences that foster deeper connections among people.

For individuals who struggle to maintain strong social ties, whether because they are highly introverted or socially anxious, spending time regularly in nature births a connection to the natural world that helps to mitigate feelings of isolation and increase feelings of well-being.

An analysis of 25 studies finds that connection to nature can elicit the deepest well-being—eudaimonia, described as living in accordance with one’s true self and values and fulfilling one’s best potential. Eudaimonic well-being may best be achieved through the experience of awe. Perhaps you’ve felt awe when looking at a star-filled night sky or getting a sudden close view of a snow-capped mountain or looking deeply into the intricacies of a wildflower. That magnificence can, for a moment, take our breath away. We are excited and at the same time humbled to be in the presence of something greater than ourselves but to which we are connected. It diminishes our troubles and opens our minds to more meaningful perspectives on ourselves and the world in which we live.

Given the consistent and growing scientific support of the link between our connection to nature and overall well-being, it’s worth exploring ways to incorporate nature into our lives.

We may engage with nature in green spaces—think trees, meadows, hills, and mountains—or blue spaces, environments where water is the focal point—the sea, rivers, lakes, and so forth. And what usually first comes to mind when we think of these spaces are the images we see. But we connect with nature not only through our visual experience but also through what we hear, smell, and even touch. We feel the warmth of the sun or the coolness of a breeze, the buoying of the water when we float in the ocean, the cold wet flow of a creek running over our bare feet. We breathe in the scent of flowers, a meadow, pine needles underfoot in a forest. We listen to birdsong, the babble of a brook, the chirps of crickets and katydids on a summer evening.

A May 2023 article in the Washington Post presented research from two studies showing that seeing or hearing birds improved the mental well-being of study participants even hours after the encounter, while urban sounds had a depressive effect.

Nature touches all our senses—even taste, as when we enjoy the fresh sweetness of blueberries plucked from the bush—and all these natural connections soothe our worries over our work or finances or family. We bask in biophilia.

How much time do we need to spend in nature to reap its beneficial effects? A 2019 study of more than 19,000 people by Mathew P. White and colleagues at the European Centre for Environment and Human Health, University of Exeter Medical School, in Exeter, UK, suggests that spending 120 minutes a week in a natural environment, whether all at once or in segments, produced significant benefits to health and well-being.

“I tell my clients that the more time you can spend out in nature the better,” says McSparin. “If you are inside all the time, however, open your windows, bring plants into your space, hang nature photos on the wall.”

To reap the fullest benefits from connecting with nature, head outdoors to a neighborhood green space, the city park, a lake, the beach, or your backyard. When you have time to fully immerse yourself, plan a trip to a state or national park. Research shows, however, that watching nature videos, listening to recorded nature sounds and birdsongs, and even looking at photos will elicit biophilia, lower stress, and promote relaxation.

Researchers are also exploring ways of bringing nature to people who have limited access to the outdoors or have mobility issues. A review of studies on the use of virtual reality to connect individuals with nature suggests that, while not as effective as a walk in the woods, it improves mental and physical well-being.

As the evidence for the benefits of engaging with nature grows, more companies are using biophilic design, bringing into the workplace natural elements: plants, fountains, nature-based colors. Microsoft has built meeting spaces in treehouses. At Amazon headquarters in Seattle, three huge glass spheres containing living plant walls serve as meeting rooms and workspaces. The Fairlife offices in Chicago feature nature images in their small conference rooms, use natural earth tone colors and wood and other natural materials throughout, and incorporate a profusion of greenery throughout the workplace.