Living in Green Spaces Reduce Health Gap
Living next to a park or a green area for all the wonderful sights and smells is not the only benefit anymore. In a recent study conducted by Dr. Richard Mitchell of the University of Glasgow, it seems that living in the presence of green spaces can have a positive impact on your health and health-related behaviors.
The team at the University of Glasgow examined 41 million people in England and examined a portion of their death records. They used this to determine if their was a relationship in health and exposure to green spaces. What they found is that the health gap between the rich and the poor was dramatically smaller ( almost half) in areas with the most green exposure. Coronary disease offered the biggest disparity among areas with and without green. Dr. Terry Hartig, of the Institute for Housing and Urban Research at Uppsala University in Sweden offers good insight into what was found in this study:
This study offers valuable evidence that green space does more than pretty up a neighborhood; it appears to have real effects on health inequality, of a kind that politicians and health authorities should take seriously.
I really think that this study proves the idea of living near green spaces provides for a healthy lifestyle. It really promotes good physical and mental health. On those stressful days, it is nice to go for a walk in the park and listen to the sounds of nature. It can really allow you to get away from all the busyness from our modern lives. It is a lot harder to exercise or get out of the house when you are living in an area where all the trees have been cut down and the only thing you have access to is a shopping center. I have lived in both situations and can attest to just how nice it is to have a park right near my house.
Please share if you felt any healthier living in areas with green. Also, how do you feel about the legitimacy of this study.
