How can I use nature and outdoor activities to improve my family's health?

Introduction

Engaging with nature and participating in outdoor activities have been increasingly recognized for their potential to improve both mental and physical health. This synthesis explores how nature-based activities can benefit family health, drawing on insights from multiple research studies.

Key Insights

Mental Health Benefits:
- Nature-based interventions (NBIs) such as gardening, green exercise, and nature-based therapy significantly improve mental health outcomes, including reducing depressive mood and anxiety, and enhancing positive affect .
- Family-based nature activities (FBNA) provide psychological benefits such as relaxation, reduced stress, and improved mood, particularly when families spend time together outdoors .
Physical Health Benefits:
- Regular physical activity in natural settings is associated with better general health and emotional well-being compared to indoor or built environments.
- Outdoor activities can help combat childhood obesity and related health issues by encouraging physical activity and reducing sedentary behavior.
Family Dynamics and Communication:
- Spending time outdoors as a family improves communication and strengthens family bonds, leading to better family functioning and interaction .
- Adventure therapy and outdoor family rehabilitation programs enhance emotional connectedness and provide empowering experiences that improve family dynamics.
Vitality and Well-being:
- Being outdoors is linked to increased subjective vitality and energy levels, which are mediated by the presence of natural elements.
- Engagement with nature allows families to escape everyday pressures, promoting calmness and enhancing overall well-being.
Barriers and Considerations:
- Weather conditions and lack of time are common barriers to regular participation in outdoor activities.
- The developmental needs of children evolve, requiring adaptation in the types of nature activities as they grow.

Conclusion

Nature and outdoor activities offer substantial benefits for improving family health. These activities enhance mental and physical well-being, strengthen family bonds, and increase vitality. Overcoming barriers such as time constraints and weather conditions, and adapting activities to meet the developmental needs of children, can further optimize these benefits. Encouraging regular engagement with nature can be a valuable strategy for promoting family health and well-being.

How can I use nature and outdoor activities to improve my family's health?

Summary

Introduction

Key Insights

Conclusion

Sources and full results

Nature-based outdoor activities for mental and physical health: Systematic review and meta-analysis

Nature-based interventions, such as gardening, green exercise, and nature-based therapy, effectively improve mental health outcomes in adults, with optimal doses ranging from 20 to 90 minutes.

Why Families Go Outside: An Exploration of Mothers’ and Daughters’ Family-Based Nature Activities

Family-based nature activities promote physical activity, relaxation, and improved mood, while fostering family communication and fostering better relationships.

Restoring Connectedness in and to Nature: Three Nordic Examples of Recontextualizing Family Therapy to the Outdoors

Recontextualizing mentalization-based family rehabilitation to the outdoors can strengthen intra-familial attuned interaction and emotional connectedness, while providing health benefits and connecting families to nature.

Using nature and outdoor activity to improve children's health.

Outdoor activities and spending time in natural environments can improve children's mental and physical health, promoting a more active lifestyle and reducing health disparities.

Engaging with nature: nature affords well-being for families and young people in Finland

Engagement with nature during outdoor recreation in Finland enhances well-being for young people and families by promoting calmness, close interaction, and perceived affordances that enhance their well-being.

Vitalizing effects of being outdoors and in nature

Being outdoors and in nature enhances subjective vitality, with nature scenes being the most effective stimuli.

Nature, Eco, and Adventure Therapies for Mental Health and Chronic Disease

Nature, eco, and adventure therapies (NEATs) can improve mental and physical health, but require better targeted and dosed programs for effective implementation in healthcare systems.

People and Nature-Based Recreation

Nature-based recreation can enhance the lives of individuals by promoting health, social skills, and environmental awareness, while also providing opportunities for sensory experiences and connection to nature.

The Relationship between Perceived Health and Physical Activity Indoors, Outdoors in Built Environments, and Outdoors in Nature

Repeated exercise in nature is consistently linked to better emotional well-being, while general health benefits are observed in both built and natural outdoor settings.

Participation in environmental enhancement and conservation activities for health and well-being in adults: a review of quantitative and qualitative evidence.

Participation in environmental enhancement and conservation activities can improve adult health and well-being by increasing physical activity, community connections, and self-esteem.

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