It is crucial to comprehend how exposure to urban and natural surroundings impacts mental health and the brain because living in cities is linked to a higher risk of mental diseases such anxiety disorders, depression, and schizophrenia.
It has been demonstrated that urban versus rural residents experience greater amygdala activation during stressful tasks. However, to look at the causal relationships between urban and nature surroundings and the brain’s stress-related neural networks, Sonja Sudimac & al conducted for the first time an intervention study to examine changes in stress-related brain areas as a result of a one-hour walk in an urban (busy street) versus a natural environment (forest).
Using a fearful face test and a social stress task, the brain activity of 63 healthy volunteers was assessed before and after the walk. This research, published 05th Septembre 2022 in Molecular Psychiatry, has shown that after a walk in a natural setting, amygdala activation declines but after a stroll in an urban one, it stabilizes. These findings imply that taking a stroll in nature can have positive impacts on stress-related brain regions, which may mean that it can avoid mental exhaustion and even disease.
The current findings may impact urban planning to increase the accessibility of green spaces and to modify urban surroundings in a way that will be advantageous for residents’ mental health given the fast rising urbanization.
A walk in nature reminds of the original nature of man, which has been spoiled by all life-destroying inventions and ecological balance, This is further evidence of the need to stop the cycle of antipocin and save what is left for a better life on our planet.