De-stress and be relaxed in nature!

#VitaminN

Have you ever felt your heart beating a mile a minute and your muscles tensing up when your stress levels rocket? When we are stressed or in danger, our sympathetic nervous system will trigger the“fight or flight”response, leading to an increased release of adrenaline, resulting in physiological reactions like rapid heart rate and increased blood pressure. At the same time, adrenaline will release the“stress hormone”- cortisol to counter anxiety.

In 2005-2006, researchers recruited over 200 students from 24 areas in Japan to participate in an experiment. The research discovered that be it sitting still in the forest to view the scenery or strolling for 15 minutes, the time spent in nature helped the participants physically relax as it significantly reduced the activity of the sympathetic nervous system, lowered adrenaline levels and blood pressure. The research also indicated that although walking anywhere can reduce anxiety, depression and anger, only being in the forest allows us to be energised and revitalised.

One of the theories is that since humans have lived in relatively natural environments since ancient times, many responses of our bodies are designed for a life spent amidst nature. Therefore, natural smells, sounds, contours and images can bring our mind and body back to their most relaxed state. In contrast, the city is a modern product, where everything is“unnatural”to humans. Our prolonged exposure to the man-made therefore leaving us wound up and affecting our health.

You can refer to the following articles if you are interested in knowing more:

Park, B. J., Tsunetsugu, Y., Kasetani, T., Kagawa, T., & Miyazaki, Y. (2009b). The physiological effects of Shinrin-yoku (taking in the forest atmosphere or forest bathing): evidence from field experiments in 24 forests across Japan. Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, 15(1), 18–26. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12199-009-0086-9

The Benefits of “Vitamin N” ➤➤

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