The research is significant regarding the benefits of nature exposure alone.
Multiple Experimental studies have examined the impact of brief nature experiences and have found these experiences to have statistically significant associations with improved attention, executive function and perceived restorativeness
Ohly H., White M.P., Wheeler B.W., Bethel A., Ukoumunne O.C., Nikolaou V., Garside R. Attention Restoration Theory: A Systematic Review of the Attention Restoration Potential of Exposure to Natural Environments. J. Toxicol. Environ. Health B Crit. Rev. 2016;19:305–343.
Berto R. The Role of Nature in Coping with Psycho-Physiological Stress: A Literature Review on Restorativeness. Behav. Sci. Basel Switz. 2014;4:394–409. doi: 10.3390/bs4040394.
Berman M.G., Jonides J., Kaplan S. The Cognitive Benefits of Interacting with Nature. Psychol. Sci. 2008;19:1207–1212.
Improved Mental Health
Nature experience led to the affective benefits of decreased anxiety, rumination and negative affect and the preservation of positive affect , as well as the cognitive benefit or increased working memory performance following a 50 minute walk in a randomly assigned study in California.
Bratman G.N., Daily G.C., Levy B.J., Gross J.J. The Benefits of Nature Experience: Improved Affect and Cognition. Landsc. Urban Plan. 2015;138:41–50. doi: 10.1016/j.landurbplan.2015.02.005.
One study tracked adults, ages 18-75 and found positive associations with feeling happy, restored and relaxed within 10 minutes of exposure to outdoor environments. Imagine what we can do in 90 minutes time.
Kondo M.C., Triguero-Mas M., Donaire-Gonzalez D., Seto E., Valentín A., Hurst G., Carrasco-Turigas G., Masterson D., Ambròs A., Ellis N., et al. Momentary Mood Response to Natural Outdoor Environments in Four European Cities. Environ. Int. 2019;134:105237. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2019.105237.
Reduced blood pressure, is a physiological indicator of relaxation.
Decreases in systolic and diastolic blood pressure were observed in meta-analyses following exposure to natural environments.
Ideno Y., Hayashi K., Abe Y., Ueda K., Iso H., Noda M., Lee J.-S., Suzuki S. Blood Pressure-Lowering Effect of Shinrin-Yoku (Forest Bathing): A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. BMC Complement. Altern. Med. 2017;17:409. doi: 10.1186/s12906-017-1912-z.
Reduced stress levels
As evidenced by a systematic review of more than 40 experimental studies, measures of heart rate, blood pressure and perceived stress were reduced by exposure to nature and outdoor environments.
Kondo M.C., Jacoby S.F., South E.C. Does Spending Time Outdoors Reduce Stress? A Review of Real-Time Stress Response to Outdoor Environments. Health Place. 2018;51:136–150. doi: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2018.03.001.
Reduced cortisol levels
When participants were exposed to a natural environment or when they engaged in mild to moderate exercise in nature. Cortisol is a frequently used biological measure of stress.
Song C., Ikei H., Miyazaki Y. Physiological Effects of Nature Therapy: A Review of the Research in Japan. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health. 2016;13:781. doi: 10.3390/ijerph13080781.