A recent report stated what we already know
‘A walk in the park can calm and restore you. This is something we take for granted in parks and recreation, because we have known it to be true ever since we started spending time in nature’.
The British Journal of Sports Medicine recently reported on scientific proof that walking in nature and spending time under leafy shade trees causes electrochemical changes in the brain that can lead people to enter a highly beneficial state of “effortless attention.”
It is interesting that only recently EEG technology used at an Edinburgh university discovered how people were lifted out of a state of mental fatigue into a ‘restorative experience’ by ‘getting away’ or ‘escaping’.
We have just returned from escaping for a week to the lush island of Madeira and I discovered how true this was. It was important to relax which was greatly enhanced by the nature and spectacular richness of the tropical green surroundings. Research tells us that these restorative experiences transcend others to produce multiple benefits which occurs when a person is ‘immersed in nature. This can include hiking, sitting by a steam or watching water bubble over rocks.
It is part of the human experience to enjoy beauty in all things, nature, people and places.
Apparently, it’s the green space and natural light and shadows with colours of nature that help us to enter a reflective mode at a time when you can comprehend several things going on at once, as state in which stresses and pressures are reduced. Enjoying multiple stimuli and perceptions even when thinking of other things, thus nature creating a fully restorative experience.
Children do better in cognitive tests when spending time in nature so a walk in a park may really be the best thing we can do for our mental and physical health. The town planners of yesteryear were very aware of this in towns where parks are found in abundance.
This is why Walking for Health schemes are so important to keep people connected with nature as well as improving physical health. Parks and local spaces, such as community gardens are also important for us to enjoy being in and working in and an important part of what is known as ‘Social Prescribing’ for better health.
Cranleigh people were introduced to a new park venture recently which is hoped to add and enrich this part of our lives for all ages. Bring on outdoor nurseries, community gardens and local parks. Its good to start focusing on the things that being joy and lift spirits, so that children can experience free play, exciting environments and the joys of gardens and gardening for many others too.