By Fran Benedict | Originally written in 2020 | Republished on simplymindful.com.
The science of nature and the brain – and why the forest may be the most underutilized medicine we have.
If there’s one thing for certain, it’s that nature is good for us. It not only serves as a calming elixir to the body – it offers powerful therapeutic effects on the brain. It’s a must-have for physical health and cognitive function, according to Yale School of the Environment.
We have a deep primal need to affiliate with our natural environments. The term for this is called Biophilia, coined by social psychologist Eric Fromm in 1964 and popularized by Harvard naturalist E.O. Wilson in the mid-1980s. Biophilia means “love of life.” The concept explains that humans have a deep-seated emotional affiliation to other living things and a yearning to connect with other forms of life.
In times of heightened stress, anxiety, and social isolation, nature can be a potent remedy. Our connection to it taps into powerful physiological, psychological, and health-supportive forces that elicit harmony, peace, and connection.
Nature and the Brain
Did you know immersion in nature can act as a low-cost brain booster and a healing tonic for wellbeing? Researchers suspect nature works primarily by lowering stress. Nature writer David Gessner, writing in National Geographic, puts it plainly:
“Science is proving what we’ve always known intuitively: nature does good things to the human brain — it makes us healthier, happier, and smarter.”
In a study by the Environmental Protection Agency, the average American spends 93% of their time indoors. Excessive screen time provides what Harvard Medical School calls “impoverished stimulation,” interfering with everything from sleep to creativity.
Authors Eva M. Selhub, MD and Alan C. Logan, ND describe in Your Brain on Nature how our digital world is experienced without consideration for what is being lost by the corresponding shift away from natural environments. Nature, they argue, has the potential to encourage the growth and continued reshaping of brain cells throughout life – improving its plasticity and supporting cognitive health as we age.
Connectivity and the Brain
As a human species, we’re wired to connect. A lack of social connection is associated with increased risk of cognitive decline, dementia, depression, and anxiety, according to The Scientist. Nature offers a powerful antidote – not just as a physical environment, but as a relational one.
Some key discoveries worth knowing:
Cognitive Psychologist David Strayer’s research, cited in National Geographic, highlights the importance of time in nature for the prefrontal cortex – the brain’s command center – which needs the chance to dial down and rest, like an overused muscle.
Researchers from the University of Exeter Medical School analyzed mental health data from 10,000 city residents over 18 years and found that people living near green spaces reported less mental distress, even after adjusting for income, education, and employment.
In The Nature Fix, Florence Williams shares research showing that time outdoors makes us healthier, more creative, and more empathetic – with protective effects against depression, ADHD, diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and more. The underlying mechanism: nature’s ability to enhance the functioning of the immune system.
Anxious or Stressed? Head for the Trees
One of the most powerful solutions can be found in the practice of forest bathing – defined as “making contact with and taking in the atmosphere of the forest,” as described in Psychology Today. Known as Shinrin-Yoku in Japan, where it originated as a form of nature therapy, research shows this practice is associated with lower cortisol levels, reduced pulse rate, and lower blood pressure.
Doctors Selhub and Logan describe nature as acting as a kind of visual valium, citing physician Franklin B. Hough’s observation that forests carry a “cheerful and tranquilizing influence…more especially when the mind is worn down by mental labor.” The phytoncides released from trees also appear to decrease stress hormone production and positively affect immune function.
Nature, Connectivity & Resiliency
Research shows that connectivity with nature — a perception of shared essence between ourselves and the natural world — helps us feel more at peace and strengthens empathy and concern for others. As one builds a strong relationship with nature, it is associated with greater happiness and more ecologically sustainable behavior.
Nature, in its brilliance, can also be viewed as a metaphor for our own resiliency. Forest fires come – and the forest always recovers, heals, and begins anew. It is very symbolic of how we rise after distressing experiences or events. It is our natural tendency.
We are nature. We are an active part of it, not bystanders apart from it.
This idea alone can help us experience a sense of harmony – of being connected to something mighty and greater than ourselves.
Originally written by Fran Benedict in 2020 | Republished on simplymindful.com
Fran Benedict is the founder of Simply Mindful LLC and the Simply Mindful Collective. She designs and facilitates wellbeing programs – including Small Acts of Wellbeing, a 6-week program for corporate, healthcare, and higher education organizations – and leads nature-based experiences through the Simply Mindful Collective.
