According to a new study, published in International Journal of Environmental Health Research, parks have been recognised as key neighbourhood places that provide residents with opportunities to experience nature and engage in various activities. Through contact with the environment and engagement in health-promoting and/or social and recreational activities in parks, users experience stress reduction and recovery from mental fatigue.
The original intent of the project was to validate previous research findings on the impact of a park visit on emotional well-being and evaluate the contribution of participating in a physical activity in the park in relation to emotional well-being.
“Overall, we found park visitors reported an improvement in emotional well-being,” said Hon K Yuen, a professor at University of Alabama in Birmingham in the US. “However, we did not find levels of physical activity are related to it. Instead, we found time spent in the park is related to improved emotional well-being,” said Yuen.
This means that potentially, all people can benefit from time in a park, according to Gavin R Jenkins, from University of Alabama in Birmingham. “If you cannot be physically active due to ageing, a disability or any other limitations, the study implies a person can still gain health benefits just from a visit to a local park,” Jenkins explained.
The study authors collected data from 98 adult park visitors, four of whom reported that they participated in the study twice. Data from the second participation were excluded, resulting in 94 unique participants. These parks were selected because they were the three main ones in the region and had a relatively high volume of visitors daily.
Although a small study, Jenkins said the significance of these findings helps reinforce the need for more parks and the conservation of those that already exist.
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