Henry David Thoreau liked nature walking. A lot: “I think that I cannot preserve my health and spirits, unless I spend four hours a day at least,—and it is commonly more than that,—sauntering through the woods and over the hills and fields, absolutely free from all worldly engagements.”
Many of us don’t have the luxury of matching Thoreau’s daily outdoor commitment—and maybe this is part of the problem. As Florence Williams states in her book The Nature Fix, “We think of nature as a luxury, not a necessity.” But if, as Hippocrates taught, “Nature itself is the best physician,” it’s worth considering journalist Richard Louv’s diagnosis of our modern “nature deficit disorder” and doing what we can to treat ourselves.
Let’s face it: we live in a “there’s a pill for that” society (served with a heaping spoonful of side effects)—we’re all about fad treatments and remedies. This is not to say that health care and medicine aren’t valuable or that a walk in the woods will cure all that ails you. But the research is compelling enough to take a hard look at the role nature plays in our lives and why most of us need more of it.
An Ancient Tradition of Healing
Nature’s healing power is far from a new discovery. In her book Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer relates that in Native traditions, humans must learn from nature’s older and wiser natural teachers. “Plants know how to make food and medicine from light and water, and then they give it away.” How’s that for pharmaceutical research?
Kimmerer continues by speaking of the majesty and power of cedar trees: “Every part is medicine for the body, from the flat sprays of foliage to the flexible branches to the roots, and throughout there is powerful spiritual medicine as well.” Native peoples have been harnessing the health benefits of nature for centuries; the rest of us would benefit greatly from catching up.
A Comfort Crisis
In his book The Comfort Crisis, Michael Easter looks at the negative effects of a society that has grown too comfortable. “Americans now spend about 93 percent of our time indoors in climate control…” under the pressure of what is now considered “first world stress.” Instead of being hungry, exposed to the elements and alert to dangers that come from living in the natural world as our ancestors once did, we’re removed from the wild and succumbing to everything from obesity and heart disease to loneliness and depression.
He suggests that reacquainting ourselves with discomfort can heal a lot of what’s broken in us and in our world, and to do so, we should head outdoors.
Biophilia
A term created by social psychologist Erich Fromm and a concept made popular by entomologist E.O. Wilson, biophilia is the hypothesis that we are at home in nature because we evolved there. We respond to nature innately; it’s evident in the plants and aquariums we buy for our offices, the nature footage we watch on repeat at the nail salon or spa, and even the scents we choose for household products. It’s why we want the room with a view. Our hearts are there, among the trees, whether we realize it or not.
Forest Bathing
The biophilia hypothesis supports practices such as Japan’s shinrin-yoku. In Korea, it’s salim yok. Here in the states? Forest bathing. Whatever you call it, it’s an ancient tradition given new life and a name by the Japanese Government in 1982. They even have designated “Forest Therapy” trails for the practice as assigned by the Forest Agency and physicians who are certified in forest medicine.
Forest bathing involves experiencing nature through all of the five senses—in some cases, more than five. M. Amos Clifford in Your Guide to Forest Bathing states that he has identified at least fourteen senses in his practice. Proprioception, enteroception, mirror sensing and body radar are just a few of the additional ways to take in your natural surroundings. Bottom line: it’s a great way to spend your time outside and primes you for experiencing nature’s health benefits.
As Clifford explains, “When the forest is allowed its place within you, it supports your body’s natural capacity for wellness and healing.”
The Nature Pyramid
Nature’s the bomb—we get it. But is it really like medicine? Even better than?
There’s a general perception that going outside does a body good, but the how and why has prompted a number of scientists over the past few decades to study the sweet spot: just what dose of nature offers the most health benefits?
Both Easter and Williams explain a version of what some scientists refer to as the “nature pyramid”: the ideal amount of time spent in nature for maximum benefits (though you really can’t spend too much).
At the base: 20 minutes outside—anywhere outside—three times per week
In the middle: 5 hours in the semiwild—state parks, rural countryside, etc.—per month
At the top: 3 days in “backcountry nature”—wild places far from the rat race—per year
And just what are the health benefits? The World Health Organization’s definition of health is “a complete state of physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” So let’s look at how nature gets us to this state of overall well-being.
Physical Well-Being
Obvious physical benefits of spending time in nature stem from time spent recreating; we tend to exercise when we’re outside, and the benefits of physical activity are widely known and validated.
But scientists have found that it goes far beyond the positive effects of movement. University of Chicago researcher Ming Kuo finds that “the range of specific health outcomes tied to nature is startling, including depression and anxiety disorder, diabetes mellitus, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), various infectious diseases, cancer, healing from surgery, obesity, birth outcomes, cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal complaints, migraines, respiratory disease, and others.”
In addition to this laundry list, spending time in nature has been found to lower blood pressure and cortisol levels, help with allergies, and boost our immune systems. Is it just because people have stepped away from the stressful business of life? That’s part of it. But a variety of variables from increased oxygen and Vitamin D to exposure to antibacterial compounds released by trees (phytoncides) do actually improve our health.
Mental Well-Being
We are, Easter explains, suffering more than ever from “diseases of despair: depression, anxiety, addiction, and suicide.” At the very least, many of us are mentally fatigued from distraction and the pace and noise of modern life. It’s no wonder that shinrin-yoku was popularized in a place with the third highest suicide rate in the world. Japan has even coined the term karoshi meaning “overwork death.”
Another ancient Japanese tradition is that of misogi, a challenge in nature as a form of cleansing and resetting. As Michael Easter prepared for his own misogi in the Alaskan wilderness, he found himself training in many outdoor settings. “These natural environments acted like a pressure washer on my mind, clearing out the week’s grime.”
This pressure washing is the reason that veterans with PTSD and people suffering from addiction benefit from river trips and other outdoor adventures. Nature sounds like birdsong, running water and even silence calm us down. Forest bathing has even been shown to decrease rumination, our tendency to dwell on negative thoughts and memories, and reduce the occurrence and intensity of depression and anxiety.
Social Well-Being
No, we don’t mean going outside to check your social media. (In fact, test subjects who walked for 20 minutes in a city park using their phones didn’t experience the benefits of those who weren't on a device.) In a world where we have never been more socially connected, we’ve actually become less sociable. We’re crankier, more easily distracted and more narcissistic as we focus on self and the game of comparison.
As Williams tells us, “Scientists are quantifying nature’s effects not only on mood and well-being, but also on our ability to think—to remember things, to plan, to create, to daydream and to focus—as well as on our social skills.”
Nature brings us together through connection and shared experience, and it’s not uncommon for us to spend time with people outside exercising, recreating and, yes, socializing. But it’s interesting that even being alone, especially in nature, can actually improve our relationships. Communing with nature helps us learn how to sit comfortably with ourselves and subsequently commune with others empathetically and sans self-consciousness. Plus, it makes us more productive, creative and more pleasant to be around overall.
Spiritual Well-Being
Ok, we added this one. Muhammad went to the mountain cave. Jesus fasted in the desert. Buddha wandered the land as an ascetic. It’s no secret that the wilderness has provided sacred spaces for spiritually minded individuals to meditate, pray and connect with their deities. But it doesn’t have to be a religious excursion to be transcendent.
Ralph Waldo Emerson recalls, “I dreamed that I floated at will in the great Ether, and I saw this world floating also not far off, but diminished to the size of an apple. Then an angel took it in his hand and brought it to me and said, ‘This must thou eat.’ And I ate the world.”
Talk about a new take on the “apple a day” adage. But perhaps it’s not so crazy to think that a healthy dose of our natural world in the form of awe can fundamentally and permanently change our perspective. Experiences that blow our minds, so to speak, also heal them. They connect us to something greater and meaningful and lead us to be more compassionate and helpful humans.
Why Nature is Better than Medicine
“Comfort crisis.” “Creativity crisis.” “Health crisis.” “Loneliness epidemic.” These are pretty loud and discouraging voices. The good news is, we know a pretty powerful antidote.
As we learn from Clifford’s guide to forest bathing, “The forest itself is the therapist, restoring our innate capacities when we slow down and give it our attention. It knows what healing we need and how to deliver just the right intervention. The necessary image, the fitting experience, the piercing insight, in the right dose that matches what we are ready to receive: this is what the forest delivers.” It is both physician and prescription.
Nature is also better than medicine because it’s free and more accessible than many like to think. As Michael Easter reminds us, “…it’s important to stop thinking that nature, as Yale professor Steven Kellert said, is ‘out there, somewhere else.’ Like it’s a place that exists only in National Geographic or on voyages to Alaska. Nature is often right outside your window, in your backyard, lining your block, and in that park down the street.”
It wasn’t created in a lab, there’s no copay, and it doesn’t require FDA approval. It can be taken in small, medium and large doses without adverse effects and bitter aftertaste. If we could bottle it, Florence Williams’ summary of her findings could be the instructions: “Go outside, often, sometimes in wild places. Bring friends or not. Breathe.”
Reciprocity
Native traditions and forest bathing encourage the practice of reciprocity—having a mutual relationship of give and take with the land. Experiencing the health benefits of nature makes us feel a kinship with the natural world, which drives us to protect it. Eco resorts like Backland are great places to enjoy nature and nurture it in the form of responsible travel. Check out our website to learn more about our love for and relationship with the land in Northern Arizona.
Sources
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self by Michael Easter
The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative by Florence Williams
Your Guide to Forest Bathing: Experience the Healing Power of Nature by M. Amos Cllifford
Walking by Henry David Thoreau