Nature Exposure

Research summary

• A systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies in The Lancet Planetary Health found greater green space exposure is associated with lower mortality, a finding reinforced by an independent systematic review of residential green space and by a dedicated meta-analysis in older adults finding lower mortality and cardiovascular risk.
• Meta-analyses also link green space exposure to lower cardiovascular disease risk and to lower cancer incidence, prevalence and mortality.
• For mental health specifically, meta-analyses find green space exposure reduces depression and anxiety symptoms, forest bathing (structured time in forest environments) improves psychological wellbeing, and nature exposure was associated with better mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic specifically.
• A systematic review grounded in Attention Restoration Theory offers a plausible cognitive mechanism.
• Most of this evidence is observational (people with access to green space often have other health advantages), so while the direction and consistency across many independent studies is reassuring, the causal magnitude of nature exposure itself is harder to pin down precisely.