If you don’t have time for a relaxing walk in the woods, try a nature video instead.
A new study found that watching even a brief video of nature scenes significantly improved viewers’ mental health, especially compared to the effect of watching scenes of urban environments.
The researchers focused on late adolescence, a period of life that in recent years has been associated with considerable mental health problems, including depression and suicidal ideation exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. .
“Adolescence is a time of multiple transitions and a time of vulnerability to mental health problems,” write the study authors. “There are many barriers to treating mental health issues. One approach is to use nature-based interventions (NBIs) to improve mental well-being. »
The study, published in Nature: Scientific Reports, notes that approximately 50% of all mental health disorders begin in adolescence, while 75% begin by age 24.
To test whether the videos would have an effect on mental health, researchers gathered 76 young adults aged 18 to 25 and randomly divided them into two groups. One group watched a video depicting a walk in a natural environment, while the other watched a scene of urban commuters on a train.
Both videos were six minutes long and both featured sounds related to the videos, such as birdsong and waterfalls in the nature video, and train noises in the urban video.
The results showed that stress levels in the group that watched the short nature video were significantly improved compared to the urban group. Additionally, the stress reduction results were long-lasting and improved with each follow-up session.
Relaxation levels and attention span were also improved in the nature video group.
However, levels of depression, described by the study authors as “depressive rumination”, were not improved in either group, suggesting that a brief video cannot compare to playing time in nature when it comes to improving mental health.
The study authors said these findings could have important implications for populations with little or no access to natural areas, such as in low-income urban areas, prisons or medical facilities.
Many adolescents are also deprived of time in nature, the authors note, due to school demands and excessive time spent indoors and looking at screens, including on social media.
“Virtual exposure to nature offers a potential complement to real-life exposure to natural environments and evidence suggests that it may be effective in improving well-being,” the authors wrote.
This new research builds on previous studies that have shown that time spent in nature, especially near water, has benefits for mental health. Nature-based interventions include a wide range of connections to nature, including “Shinrin-yoku,” the Japanese technique of forest bathing.
Some other nature-based interventions may also incorporate psychological approaches and therapies, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness, and meditation.
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