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The world has been at a standstill for over an entire year now because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus has swept the globe, causing unforeseen circumstances such as quarantine, job loss, online school, and other stressors that have changed our way of life. But how does this affect us? The World Health Organization (2020) has stated that the principal psychological impact resulting from the coronavirus pandemic to date is elevated rates of stress or anxiety. This psychological impact has predicted increases in loneliness, depression, drug use, self-harm, and suicidal behaviour (WHO, 2020). Countries are now facing an increased demand for mental health services that they cannot keep up with due to a lack of funding in mental health sectors (WHO, 2020). COVID-19 has disrupted or entirely halted critical mental health services in 93% of countries worldwide, with over 60% of these disruptions occurring to mental health services for vulnerable people, such as children and adolescents (WHO, 2020). Some of these important services include Kids Help Phone seeing a 170% increased volume in their phone line services and an increase of 114% to their text line (Ottawa, 2020). If we cannot change a situation that is affecting us, we must look inwards and change ourselves instead. Practicing a mental health strategy like forest bathing is one of the many ways we can find inner quiet and happiness amidst a global crisis.
Though COVID-19 has led to psychological distress for many, there are a multitude of strategies to cope with stress and anxiety, such as reaching out to friends and family, physical activity, deep breathing, and even taking up a hobby (Canada, 2008). One unique strategy that has shown to have benefits for elevated levels of stress and anxiety is forest bathing. We are blessed in New Brunswick to be able to make use of this emerging strategy in our expansive green outdoors to improve our mental health.
What is Forest Bathing?
“Shinrin-yoku” (forest bathing) is a practice credited to Japan that has been around since the 1980s. According to National Geographic, it was created to combat “tech-boom burnout” and inspire residents to reconnect with and protect their forests. It is essentially forest therapy, which is where you sit in the forest and relax, soaking in nature. After being researched for its holistic benefits, it is now a cornerstone in Japanese preventative healthcare (Holidays, 2021). Forest therapy has since spread from Japan to across the globe. For example, Forest Holidays is an organization based in the UK that hosts forest bathing experiences. They consulted researchers who summarized the following benefits: it reduces stress, improves mood, increases creativity, boosts the immune system, reduces high blood pressure, and accelerates recovery from illness. Since physical and mental health are interdependent (Association, n.d.), all of these additional benefits will circulate back to your overall mental health, making this an excellent holistic activity.
The Science Behind Nature and Mental Health
The concept of forest bathing can be implemented in day-to-day life by merely spending time in nature. It may seem apparent that nature can improve your mental health, but there are still many questions that are important in order to see benefits from forest therapy. For example, do you know how long to spend in nature to see a change, or what kind of outdoor environment you must occupy to reap the potential benefits? The answers to these questions will greatly impact your experience while forest bathing.
Dr. Willi Broeren, a family doctor and outdoor enthusiast in Fredericton, wrote an article for tourism in New Brunswick titled, “8 Reasons Why You (Really) Want to Spend Time in Nature,”. She emphasizes that, “nature is truly the best form of medicine,” by providing the following reasons to fellow New Brunswickers.
Spending time in nature makes us happy.
Access to parks decreases our risk of death and disease.
Being in nature is good for your brain.
Nature helps boost our immune system and decreases inflammation.
Nature has the power to heal.
Exposure to nature and greenery is good for students.
Walking in the woods is good for your physical well-being.
Spending time in nature makes us kinder.
From a week-long study conducted on nearly 20,000 people from England, participants reported significant amounts of increased “health” and “well-being” after spending 120 minutes or more outdoors. This means that all participants that spent at least 120 minutes outdoors experienced an increase in health and well-being (White, 2019). In addition, they found that it does not matter how these minutes are achieved, meaning one can take a long walk on the weekend or have regular, shorter walks and still receive the same benefits. In the study they state that the findings were consistent for people of any sex, age, socioeconomical status, whether they were disabled or non-disabled, and for those who did or did not meet physical activity recommendations. In short, 120 minutes in nature can benefit anyone, but more research is needed to figure out how long these benefits last.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6565732/figure/Fig1/
The odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals of self-reported well-being and quality of health as a function of time spent in nature. Significant increases in health and well-being are observed after 120 minutes, after which benefits decrease but still remain significant.
These benefits were consistent across urban/rural environments, and they determined that any outdoor greenery would garner benefits, however, that experiences may be better in more biodiverse settings and ones which hold cultural value or a sense of belonging (White, 2019). Even listening to nature sounds and incorporating greenery into your space can lower blood pressure and the stress hormone cortisol (School, 2018). If you forest bathe, you will see similar benefits through developing a deep connection to nature. Breathing in the natural oils that are released into the air from trees called phytoncides can help to boost your immune system as well (Parks, 2020). Ontario Parks also mentions that in the forest, reduced stress levels allow you to think more clearly, creatively, and increase mood, focus and energy.
Forest therapy is an excellent stress-reducing method because it is a state of mindfulness in nature as opposed to an actual activity; so you can pair it with anything you do outdoors. You can also mix in previously mentioned stress coping strategies and do things like forest meditation with deep breathing, or engage in your hobbies in the forest/park, such as playing guitar or doing outdoor yoga. Because of this it is extremely flexible and can be a solo self-reflection activity or an engaging group activity.
Conclusion
It is more important now than ever to take care of your mental health. It is not entirely clear how COVID-19 will have an impact on our mental health in the long-term, but we can focus on the now. It is not hard to see why the Mental Health Commission of Canada is predicting an increased rate of suicide due to the pandemic. Due to this, prevention and self-management have become extremely important.
The White (2019) study and others have shown us that getting out into nature and engaging in forest bathing can have amazing positive effects for everyone in their overall health, especially our mental health. Researchers are now turning their attention to how this natural threshold holds up to specific clinical groups, such as women with breast cancer. Hopefully when more studies are conducted, it can be implemented into an official public health guideline. To receive maximum perceived health benefits, try to get outdoors for at least 120 minutes every week in your preferred form of leisure. Bring people from your bubble to make it fun for everyone, and do not forget to social distance and bring a mask just in case!
References
Association, C. M. (n.d.). Benefits of Good Mental Health. Retrieved from Canadian Mental Health Association: https://toronto.cmha.ca/documents/benefits-of-good-mental-health/
Broeren, D. W. (2020, May 27). 8 REASONS WHY YOU (REALLY) WANT TO SPEND TIME IN NATURE. Retrieved from #ExploreNB: https://tourismnewbrunswick.ca/story/8-reasons-why-you-really-want-spend-time-nature
Canada, G. o. (2008, 01 07). Mental Health - Coping With Stress. Retrieved from Government of Canada: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/healthy-living/your-health/lifestyles/your-health-mental-health-coping-stress-health-canada-2008.html
FITZGERALD, S. (2019, October 18). The secret to mindful travel? A walk in the woods. Retrieved from National Geographic: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/forest-bathing-nature-walk-health#:~:text=The%20term%20emerged%20in%20Japan,and%20protect%20the%20country's%20forests.
Holidays, F. (2021). FOREST BATHING EXPERIENCES. Retrieved from Forest Holidays: https://www.forestholidays.co.uk/activities/forest-bathing/
Organization, W. H. (2020). Mental health and COVID-19. Retrieved from World Health Organization, Regional Office for Europe: https://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/health-emergencies/coronavirus-covid-19/publications-and-technical-guidance/mental-health-and-covid-19
Ottawa, C. (2020). Mental Health Commission of Canada. Retrieved from COVID-19 and Suicide: Potential Implications and Opportunities to Influence Trends in Canada: https://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/sites/default/files/2020-11/covid19_and_suicide_policy_brief_eng.pdf
Parks, O. (2020, September 23). Healing in the forest: a guide to forest bathing. Retrieved from Ontario Parks: https://www.ontarioparks.com/parksblog/guide-forest-bathing/
School, H. M. (2018, July). Sour mood getting you down? Get back to nature. Retrieved from Harvard Health Publishing: https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/sour-mood-getting-you-down-get-back-to-nature
White, M. A. (2019). Spending at least 120 minutes a week in nature is associated with good health and wellbeing. Sci Rep, 9, 7730.
WHO. (2020, October 5). COVID-19 disrupting mental health services in most countries, WHO survey. Retrieved from World Health Organization: https://www.who.int/news/item/05-10-2020-covid-19-disrupting-mental-health-services-in-most-countries-who-survey
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