'Forest Bathing' Considered Healthful 252
Hugh Pickens writes "The NY Times reports that although allergies and the promise of air-conditioning tend to drive people indoors at this time of year, when people spend time in more natural surroundings — forests, parks, and other places with plenty of trees — they experience increased immune function. A study of 280 healthy people in Japan, where visiting nature parks for therapeutic effect has become a popular practice called 'Shinrin-yoku,' or 'forest bathing,' found that being among plants produced 'lower concentrations of cortisol, lower pulse rate, and lower blood pressure,' among other things. Another study in 2007 showed that men who took two-hour walks in a forest over two days had a 50-percent spike in levels of natural killer cells, and a third study found an increase in white blood cells that lasted for a week in women exposed to phytoncides in forest air."
No shit (Score:1, Informative)
Great outdoors good for you. News at 11. What would we do without science?
Re:Breaking news (Score:5, Informative)
Both groups "got off their ass" and "went outside". The comparison was between walking in a city area, and walking in a forest.
Did you even open the article?
Re:Breaking news (Score:4, Informative)
Did you even read the summary? It's not just taking a walk outside, it's walking through the woods. This study has nothing to do with exersize or being sedentary, it's about breathing woodland air. AFAIK exersize has never been shown to boost the immune system (someone please correct me if I'm wrong).
I read about another study that showed that children who live in spotlessly clean homes are more prone to allergies and athsma than kids whose moms are slobs. This may be related somehow, I don't know.
Re:Breaking news (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Duh (Score:2, Informative)
Yes, urban sprawl is much better for humanity and the environment than living in a city.
Why, when I was a kid and went to Jacksonville Beach, I could drive for miles along the coastal highway and not see a house or a condo. Thank goodness the developers were so forward thinking that they plopped huge condo developments and beautiful beach houses all along the highway so that the water can't even be seen any more!
And look at all those nasty forests that have been clearcut to bare earth, razed, paved, and piped so that people could escape the "concrete hell."
There's nothing wrong with city living. There is something wrong with living your entire life in a closed environment. The more people live in the cities, the more area we have to play in when we just have to GTFO of town and relax.
3 week intelligence buff as well (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Am I the only one? (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Am I the only one? (Score:1, Informative)
Am I the only one that read the title as "'Forest Bathing' Considered Harmful"?
It's a kdawson article, what do you expect? The moron decided to change the title from the original submission of "'Forest Bathing' is Good for Your Health" that pickens submitted it as to this garbage.
Also, I read it as the same thing.
'Considered Harmful' [wikipedia.org]
Re:Am I the only one? (Score:1, Informative)
It looks more like an insect.
http://www.biology.duke.edu/dnhs/pics/Cordulegaster_naiad_face.jpg [duke.edu]
Re:Am I the only one? (Score:2, Informative)