Extended Essay Coordinator: Olivia Happel
Supervisor: Megan O'Carroll
World Studies EE area of study:
Health and Development
Summaries:
4: Nature Reduces Urbanization Stress
40: It is not yet known why urban living is correlated with a rise in mental health disorders, but by increasing the frequency and accessibility of experiences with the natural world, this stress can be reduced for urban dwellers.
400: Since the turn of the century, the percent of the global populations living in urban environments has continued to rise. With this rise, the percentage of the population with reported clinical mental disorders has also increased. Worse still, being surrounded by abiotic environment seems to be the cause of low quality mental health. The solution is returning to nature, as it lowers stress signals and produces positive emotions. The stress signals noted thus far are decreased rumination, and cortisol, heart rate, and blood pressure drops. As a result, some doctors are prescribing nature as a required “dose” of antidepressant or anti-anxiety drug. While the amount of nature or type of exposure in order to create this reaction is largely still uncertain, implementing nature back into our lives could dramatically increase our happiness. Many scientists believe that the “visual richness” and specific sensory interactions achieved in nature, such as the complexity of a forest or the feeling of walking barefoot on grass are biological needs for mental health. This idea is called “Biophilia,” meaning “love of life”. Yet, spending three days backpacking in the wilderness in order to experience nature is rarely a viable or desired option for all people. Therefore, in order to increase the mental health of the growing population of urbanites, making nature accessible and integrated into cities would be the best solution. Bill Browning, an environmental strategist, suggests that incorporating nature into modern city living could even be as simple as images or murals that can be viewed frequently. Moreover, Browning’s biophilic design strategy accommodates the maintenance of urban benefits. Although not conducive to mental health, living in a city provides more efficient communication, quicker transportation, and better access to necessary supplies and services, like hospitals and potable water. By introducing nature back into already developed cities, the need for a lifestyle change in all citizens would not be required, as creating green spaces and more natural working and living environments would be something people would come across in their daily lives. As for making true, wild nature accessible, South Korea has already mastered this. In their half of the peninsula “recreational forests,” similar to the national parks of the United States, cover sixty-four percent of the land. For the approximate price of 1 USD, one can enter into one of the thirty-nine “healing forests” around the country to reduce stress and encourage the return of positive emotions.
Title: Environmental Health: Healing Stress Through Nature
Research Question: To What Extent Can Nature Be Utilized to Reduce the Stress Caused by Urbanization?
IB Area of Study: World Studies Essay: Health and Development
Subject Areas: Biology and Psychology
Introduction:
In a world overly conscious of globally-scaled environmental changes, the benefits which the natural world offers to mental health are rarely considered. As of 2008, human beings are officially classified as an urban species, meaning that most humans live in urban environments. One of the most important changes that have come along with this is the increase in mental health issues. Depression, anxiety, and even common stress are all on the rise. With a mentally unhealthy society, harmony and cooperation among citizens will decrease. In the urban, technologically advanced and connected global culture, the transfer from idea to design to implementation has become streamlined. With the inability to communicate effectively, the rapid speeds of innovation in medicine and in technology which the globe has grown accustomed to will deteriorate. If individuals cannot be mentally healthy, they will not be able to contribute as much to the growth of society. However, there is a solution. Building evidence is revealing that increasing human’s amount of interaction with nature easily and greatly improves mental health. Not only does time spent with nature improve one’s perceived mood, but physiological signs of stress, such as cortisol levels, are also reduced. Though people have claimed for centuries that spending time in the outdoors is “good for the soul,” science is beginning to unravel the physiological explanation of this through tests on brain waves, hormones, blood pressure, and heart rate. For environmentalists, biologists, psychologists, and medical professionals, this concept has a potentially quite significant range of impacts. In studying the effects of humans’ relationship with nature, scientists have discovered this simple way to heal the mind, which hints that humans are wired to live amidst a natural atmosphere. Especially for the growing number of people concerned with their mental health in the future, or already struggling with maintaining mental health, nature’s ability to improve mood is highly relevant and remarkable because its inherent characteristics could be controlling the most precious human organ—the brain. By deliberate use of varying degrees of immersion into nature, society can become happier and thrive mentally. These degrees can be categorized as full immersion, partial immersion, integration of nature into an atmosphere, and even imitation of organic designs. This begs the question, to what extent can nature be utilized to reduce the stress caused by urbanization? Though it is not yet fully known why urban living is correlated with a rise in mental health disorders and stress, by increasing the frequency and accessibility of experiences with the natural world mental strain can be reduced for urban dwellers.
Why Nature Works:
In order to conclude how nature can reduce stress, the subject of biology is required. Nature reduces people’s stress in biologically measured ways. This is beneficial because researchers can reduce reliance on surveys or interviews, which tend to yield inconsistent or unreliable results in comparison to empirical data. The stress response occurs in multiple areas of the body, although the brain controls it. Psychologist George Everly Jr. comments on this entire process explaining, “The brain is the control center of the body, so a mental disruption results in physiological disruption as well” (n.p.). Heart rate, blood pressure, and cortisol are all reduced when time is spent in nature. The brain relaxes when it has been in nature for a while, as is measured in brain-wave-monitoring EEG scans. Researchers look for the switch between “beta waves,” and “alpha waves.” Beta waves are produced when the brain is alert and highly focused. Consistent brain functioning at the beta wave level is extremely energy draining (“What”). Conversely, alpha waves signal a relaxed and pensive state signaling the brain’s natural resting state (“What”). Percentage of hemoglobin content in the blood of the prefrontal cortex, which deals with rational decision making, also increases. This indicates an increased and more efficient brain activity in this area. Through these physiological measures of the stress response, scientific results can be obtained more accurately because these are measures consistent across time and place. That is to say, all humans have blood pressure, brain waves, and heart rates, and researchers can, therefore, collect objective and repeatable results. This also proves that stress is not only a state of mind but also a bodily condition.
Yet, despite other bodily factors, the brain is the most important organ involved in the stress response. Here is where the discipline of psychology becomes relevant. The brain controls all bodily functions and is thus responsible for them. As a thought enters the mind, it controls one’s behavior. When time is spent in nature, activation in the subgenual prefrontal cortex, an area of the brain associated with depression, is reduced (Bratman). This leads to reduced rumination and reduced negative thoughts. Stanford University conducted a study on the effects of walking in nature for twenty minutes. They concluded that spending time in nature rather than inside or in an urban environment was better for mental health because it reduced depression and anxiety. This progression of ideas has led many scientists to the conclusion that humans require nature to stay mentally healthy.
Through their newly hatched concept of “Power Forests”, Finland is putting a firm effort into bettering their mental health. Spearheading the forest trails is Dr. Kalevi Korpela who works for the University of Tampere in Finland researching the relationship between nature and human well-being. The concept of a Power Forest highlights a way to balance accessibility and approachability of nature with its strong benefits in the wild state. These forest trails either 4.4 or 6.6 kilometers long have the specified purpose of increasing interaction with nature and have a different focus than the national parks, hiking trails, or even most guided nature walks. What distinguishes a trail in a Power Forest from others are the signs posted along it which guide the walkers through tasks specifically designed to alleviate stress such as “‘you may squat down and feel a plant’” (Williams 146). In 2010, surveys were conducted to determine the effectiveness of the trails. Participants were prompted to rate their mood before and after walking the trail and doing the tasks posted along it. The result was that more than eighty percent of the users had improved their mood through the walk; those who walked longer trails saw larger improvement (Sarjala). The reason Power Forests are so critical to the understanding of the extent to which nature reduces stress is that they powerfully combine pure nature and known psychological factors in the structure and setup of the signs and trails. More Power Forests were formed within Finland, as well as in Sweden, Luxembourg, and France after the first was developed.
Though there are other ways to reduce stress, it is nature’s inherently pleasing sensory qualities which increase the remedial power of it. Many scientists claim that humans are “programmed” to interact with nature, meaning that humans have specific reactions to natural stimuli that do not occur in man-made environments. This theory is referred to as Biophilia. Evidence for biophilia is present in the human senses of hearing, sight, and smell. In his book, The Environment and Mental Health: A Guide for Clinicians, author Ante Lundberg discusses this claim in great length, agreeing that, “Although we now live in a habitat immensely altered by human ingenuity, there is no reason to believe that our basic needs differ from those of our ancestors” (Lundberg 183). Indeed, adopting Lundberg’s views, the severe rise in anxiety, depression, and stress in recent years begins to make sense. Within the modern environment, humans spend not nearly enough time interacting with nature to satisfy their biological need for connection with nature. However to remove people from their urban habitats to a fully natural one is not necessary to achieve biophilic success; a balance can be struck through understanding how natural stimuli affect mood.
Sense perception is a way of knowing about the surrounding world. Though all senses are filtered through an individual’s perception of the world around it, there is a shared knowledge about the natural world which is being lost among urban populations. More than just a fleeting feeling, nature offers a so-called “visual complexity” which grey, synthetic environments do not. Bill Browning, an expert in biophilic design and member of the American Institute of Architects writes about biophilic design in the construction of workplaces in order to increase the mental health of employees, arguing that “Man-made environments are all planned, offer little intrigue, and do not appeal to man’s creative thinking” (Browning). The main component lacking in these environment is a “visual richness,” known scientifically as fractal imagery, which is pleasing to humans, helping them to relax and destress (Browning). When viewed, fractal imagery triggers the brain’s pleasure centers, creating feelings of calm and happiness through the release of endorphins. Nature not only offers more calming colors and fractal imagery but also a depth of field which is hard to find in the city. Looking at views which are far away relaxes the eyes, and thereby reduces tension which can build up in the eye muscles, causing headaches (Browning). Despite the many aspects of visual stimuli, nature easily fulfills the biophilic needs of human eyes.
Human’s sense of hearing is also a critical point in the response to nature. The auditory map of a natural environment, known as a “soundscape” has much stronger sway on an individual’s mood than it is given credit for. As soundscape artist Joshua Smyth notes, “natural soundscapes can provide restorative benefits independent of those produced by visual stimuli” (Williams 97). Human brains are particularly responsive to three specific undercurrents of sound called “undersounds”—bird noises, water, and wind (Williams 98). Upon hearing these sounds, neurons in the basal ganglia are activated. This is significant because the basal ganglia, besides being a center for language processing, is also the brain’s center for emotional regulation. Thus, through hearing nature sounds, one can build more neural connections to the basal ganglia, increasing positive emotions and focus (Williams 99). Essentially, the undersounds cause nature-goers to act in a more calm and stable way. In the lens of behavioral psychology, if bird calls, water, and wind sounds boost mood, repetition of the action will increase its effectiveness. With the case of Korpela’s Power Forests viewed through behavioral psychology, where all three undersounds are present, after repetition of a certain trail resulting in calm or happiness a recording of those trail noises would be enough to trigger a better mood. That is not to say that over time the required stimulus becomes smaller, but rather that the response to the stimulus becomes quicker. In this way, these walks in the forest demonstrate the idea that plunging oneself into nature does not have to be long to take powerful effects. Even without being in real nature, a simple five minutes per day of nature sounds can help increase mood and prevent depression.
Even the olfactory system is engaged in the interplay between the mind and nature. All plants produce chemicals called volatile compounds or “VOCs” which are used for communication. Though not totally conclusory, research has been done which states that the VOCs help humans to relax and to calm down. The sense of smell is linked with very primordial parts of the human brain, and as such the things one smells have an immense impact on one’s mood. In forests, the scents released by plants “stimulate respiration and act as mild sedatives” (Williams 77). In this way, olfactory stimuli are considered to be major contributors to the reduction of stress found in nature. Because of this, and because of their relatively easy adaptability to various locations, natural olfactory and auditory stimuli are critical tools for creating non-stressful alternatives to traditional natural environments.
Harnessing the Benefits of Immersion:
Because spending a week in a large national park is not a feasible resolution for every single moment of stress, different types of nature immersion must be explored to keep the number of people interacting with nature at a maximum. For stronger understanding of how nature can be utilized to reduce stress, these experiences can be categorized into four parts: full immersion, partial or accessible immersion, integration, and replication. Especially as humans have become an urban species, the role of nature in everyday life has changed. In order to maintain the quality of mental health experienced outside of cities, people must exercise more intent in where they spend their time. Though the relaxed state received in nature occurs subconsciously, one cannot simply expect the same healing results from spending the majority of their time in urban environments. While little time is required to interaction with nature to take effect, a full realization of the brain’s resting state requires extended time in nature. Based on personal preferences and living environs there is flexibility for the individual to pursue nature in ways that are most effective for them.
Despite differences in the extent of effects, the ways in which full immersion and partial immersion impact the brain are identical. Beta waves of the brain are lowered after a few days in nature; alpha waves increase (Williams 85). Background noises of cities are decreased, allowing for the ear to pick up on any present undersounds. Full immersion is distinguished as the most effective in lowering stress. Because fewer distractions are available to vie for attention and the diverse sensory experiences of nature synergize for a more intense effect. The Japanese refer to full immersion in nature as “shinrin-yoku” or “forest bathing”. This concept was born in the 1980s as a type of preventative medicine (“Shinrin-Yoku”). Today, almost 25% of the Japanese participate in forest bathing (Arnold n.p.). “What this forest bathing is all about is immersing all five senses,” declares Caroline Arnold, the director of an organic educational farm in the UK (n.p.). What matters is that the senses are engaged to produce alpha waves, not just dopamine. Now, one can argue that all five senses can be stimulated in an urban landscape. Bright billboards, the aroma of cooking food, or calming music, do all very obviously engage the senses and have the potential to relax the human psyche. The non-negotiable additives that come with an urban environment including jet noise, road noise, and the stench of gasoline limit one’s ability to focus and keep the unwanted beta waves coming. It is when these urban distractions are removed that alpha waves begin to show up, signaling that the brain is able to focus more easily and not get caught up or agitated with smaller things. All common stress symptoms vanish. As a full immersion into nature heightens the benefits of spending time in nature, this deep sort of engagement into the wilderness is only required a few times a year to achieve reprieve from serious mental health issues.
Partial immersion, through its ease of both accessibility and accommodation, holds considerable merit as well. Partial immersion means the experience of nature is not quite a wilderness, but it is a space large enough to take a walk in, like a neighborhood park. In spite of the dedication required to reap the benefits of immersion in nature, stress removal can also be achieved in short bursts, such as beach walks or time spent in a leafy backyard. Although most research on immersion into nature would be categorized as full immersion, there is evidence that a short period of time in nature can have significant effects. This is evident in Korpela’s forest trails with “awareness-enhancing psychological tasks” (Ellison). The findings from Korpela’s forest trails demonstrate that partial immersion boosts one’s mood. The forest trails demonstrate that the longer one remains in nature, the better their mood will become. Despite partial immersion’s inability to block the sound of traffic, this sort of immersion yields considerable positive change on the psyche and is more approachable to those who will not or cannot wrench themselves from life inside the city.
The Power Forests demonstrate a mix between full and partial immersion which is worth further analysis. While the trails themselves are short, they are in densely wooded areas, far from city smog or jet noise (Sarjala). While the trails match partial immersion in style, the actual location—and thus the potential environmental or biological factors involved—matches that of full immersion. One weakness which should be addressed in the results of Korpela’s research is that being in nature eliminates major stress factors such as work pressures. Simply by being away from these stresses could produce a relaxed and positive mood. Even though the use of the posted guidelines to increase self-awareness of how one is being restored by a nature experience could have an unintended placebo effect on the walkers the presence of these guidelines enhance the natural stimuli which are actually the factors at work in the hikers’ elevated moods. The guidelines also have the potential to assist those who normally may not have been moved by the elements of nature to focus on the plethora of stimuli. In all, Power Forests model an excellent way to receive the synergy of the full spectrum of nature’s mood enhancing qualities—without sacrificing the ease of commitment that comes with a partial immersion experience.
While Power Forests themselves are not available in most of the world, similar ideas could easily be achieved through intentional action on the part of citizens themselves. If urbanites, and even suburban dwellers, are willing to notice the available nature or nature mimicry around them, they may experience less stress, depending on the characteristics of their environment. Especially for those who do not live in an area with easy access to nature, focusing on the organic aspects of their environment could help improve their spirits and stave off mood disorders. If partial immersion areas such as dog parks or community gardens exist within an urban area already, minding certain aspects of it such as relaxing smells and fractal imagery could also help to reduce stress.
Ultimately, while the modern urban world carries many benefits not found in nature, such as easier communication and safety, it struggles to keep the population from stress and other mental disorders. Hence, caring for mental health can be done more thoroughly in a rural environment. While the fact that rural environments benefit mental health more that urban ones is widely accepted in the scientific community, there is less research about the distinctions between suburban and rural. Ultimately, the suffusing of nature into people’s lives is a spectrum, not a “check the box” situation. Additionally, the spectrum of nature immersion operates like the pH scale, where each level up is ten times greater than the previous (“Acids”). The benefits of nature will increase exponentially the further a location strays from the city so the populations of larger cities will feel the effects of urbanization on mental health more strongly. Every step towards integration of the urban and natural worlds has strong effects. That being said, anything short of “pure nature” functions as a supplement because there is no equally beneficial replacement for a nature experience.
Nature in Established Society:
Even with easily accessible immersion, not all of the population has been willing to participate, causing the collapse of their mental health. Those busy with the charges of city life are usually those who need a dose of nature the most. Likewise, there are those who simply do not want to be in nature. To accommodate these scenarios, methods of integration and replication must be utilized to extend the healing power of nature to all parts of the population. Integration means using already standing urban areas as hosts for nature. This could include a fountain inside a lobby, grassy areas in between buildings, or flowers on a desk. This method can be used as a supplement for one’s nature requirements in between wilderness immersion periods. Nature integration engages people who normally would not choose to interact with nature who are now forced to do so. In light of this, even those uninformed about the benefits of nature on mental health will, when happening upon these natural elements, still receive the benefits from nature via integration.
The final derivative of nature, replication, is based on all the characteristics that make forest bathing so effective. Nature replication must utilize a combination of smells, sounds, and visuals to influence the brain. Borrowing the idea of biophilia, some architects are creating work using “biophilic design”. Elements of nature can even be implemented in already constructed buildings. Addition of nature replication can be as simple as scent diffusers, noise simulator, or nature images. Though not as effective as the real thing, the versatility of these additives can make any space more conductive to good mental health. Design using organic patterns can be valuable for stress reduction, and in addition to this, biophilic design focuses on replicating spatial designs found in nature. Browning discusses how through biophilic design people can, “create healthier workplaces and happier employees” (Browning), yet these tactics could transfer to schools, doctor’s offices, and homes to reduce stress from all aspects of life. A biophilic design would also make nature more approachable to those who will not venture outside in nature due to concerns such as illnesses, allergies, mobility issues or a fear of bugs. Not only is biophilic design easy to input, but it also benefits those unaware of how nature reduces stress while increasing reminders for those who already plan on spending time outdoors.
Because nature has such powerful effect on stress levels, doctors should use it like medicine. Given the growing body of evidence pointing at medicinal properties of nature, “green prescribing” is becoming increasingly popular in the United States and New Zealand (Arnold n.p.). As doctors prescribe nature therapy in a formal way, people become more likely to follow orders, because they have motivation from an authority. In fact, using nature as a form of prevention for mental health disorders is a great step in preventing these critical issues, because the WHO predicts that depression will be the second largest disease in 2020 (Arnold n.p.). Nature prescriptions also have the potential to even “the disparity in local healthcare resources” (Nisbet) because nature is equally affordable and effective across cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds. If doctors or healthcare providers work to fold nature connection into daily life, patients could receive benefits even without realizing it. In fact, in one study, most people underestimated the change that would occur in their mood after a brief walk in a green atmosphere (Nisbet). While it is unfortunate that urbanites face mental health struggles, green prescribing offers a new platform from which to spread the remedy of nature.
Conclusion:
As more people populate the earth and mass communication increases, avoiding city living becomes more difficult. However, with the deliberate action on the part of citizens, managers, designers, and health care professionals, the mental health crises associated with city life can be reduced through a return to the natural world. Depending on the particular characteristics of an individual’s life, the degrees of nature interaction required may vary. Overall, the closer one can get to a sustained and full immersion, the richer the effects. Until further research is done, it cannot be known which of the specific aspects of nature is the most effective for mental health. Yet despite this, what draws most urban citizens back into nature is not a prescription or a sense of obligation but the allure of the natural world. After all, humans make many emotionally-based decisions, including where to spend their time. As the Finnish forest trails impacted most of its hikers, positive memories of nature are what draw urban dwellers back for more. Even though frequent, complete immersion would be best for mental health, every step towards integrating nature into the lives of urban individuals is critical if the stress of urbanization is to be avoided.
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