Into The Blue! (Or Green)

A recent large scale study in Finland has seemingly huge ramifications in terms of developing strategies to protect our mental health.

In a study of 16,000 people from a cross section of society the study found a 33% decrease in reliance on medication for depression, anxiety and high blood pressure for people who visited a blue (large bodies of water) or green (forest, park etc) environment between 4 and 5 times a week. What's more these results were best for those coming from a lower income demographic.

So in short, spending time amongst nature is good for our wellbeing. Now, that might not come as a huge surprise and there may be other factors at play. For example, those who reported visiting such places may have been doing so for exercise - a known method to boost wellbeing.

However, even if is just going for a quick walk the message is clear - spending time in nature regularly is good for us.But how do we, living in busy cities and with busy lives, use this information?

Well one idea would be to take at least one day on the weekend to visit our nearest park or green space.

To add to that, if we look at our commute to work is there a way we can change our route slightly to include a walk through a park? Maybe get off a stop earlier or go the long way round?

I don't know about you but that sounds like an ideal way to help wind down after a busy day at work!

One thing is clear, the rewards have the potential to be huge...

Whatever you choose, be lucky x