Need and Interest in Nature Prescriptions to Protect Cardiovascular and Mental Health: A Nationally-Representative Study With Insights for Future Randomised Trials

Astell–Burt, Thomas; Hipp, J. Aaron; Gatersleben, Birgitta; Adlakha, Deepti; Marselle, Melissa R.; Olcoń, Katarzyna; Pappas, Evangelos; Kondo, Michelle C.; Booth, Gillian L.; Bacon, Simon L.; Lem, Melissa; François, Monique E.; Halcomb, Elizabeth; Moxham, Lorna; Davidson, Patricia Mary; Feng, Xiaoqi

doi:10.1016/j.hlc.2022.11.008

Cited by 19 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 40 publications

(42 reference statements)

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“…The programme facilitates involvement in therapeutic, team‐based recreational activities within the natural environment – with this previously identified as connected to consumers' experiences of recovery and empowerment (Picton et al, 2019). Research investigating the effect of nature on mental health has revealed robust benefits to viewing and spending time in natural environments, such as outdoor parks, nature reserves, and national parks (Astell‐Birt et al, 2023; Roberts et al, 2022). Being in nature is associated with improvements in individual mood and impulse inhibition, reduced physiological stress, and both short‐ and long‐term positive effects noted on depression and anxiety (Bratman et al, 2012; Jimenez et al, 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Connection and recovery in the COVID‐19 age: An analysis of changes in goal‐setting throughout the pandemic by consumers living with enduring mental illness

Patterson,

Roberts,

Yousiph

et al. 2023

Int J Mental Health Nurs

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Goal‐setting is a tool that empowers consumer recovery. Though the pandemic has affected consumer goal‐setting, the nature and extent of this impact have not been examined in a recovery setting. The aim of this study is to assess whether the recovery goals of individuals with serious mental illness changed in association with the COVID‐19 pandemic. In this mixed‐methods design, data were collected from a purposeful sample of consumers (nTOTAL = 355) aged 19–67 years (MAGE = 44.56, SD = 13.05) attending Recovery Camp, a 5‐day therapeutic‐recreation programme for individuals living with severe mental illness (e.g., PTSD, schizophrenia). Consumer‐set goals were examined across 5 programmes prior to March 2020 (nPRE = 126) and 11 following (nPOST = 229). Goals were set on day one, with attainment self‐scored on day five. Chi‐squared goodness‐of‐fit tests compared goal proportions per domain; tests of independence assessed changes in goals pre‐ and post‐pandemic. Six goal domains were identified: Approach‐Based Recovery, Avoidance‐based Recovery, Novel Physical Activities, Relationships, Health, and Recreation/Relaxation. Irrespective of the pandemic, goal attainment was consistently high across all programmes (86.56%). Approach‐based Recovery goals were predominant pre‐pandemic, but were significantly reduced post‐pandemic (p = 0.040). Goals related to Relationships and Novel Physical Activities took precedence throughout the pandemic. Post‐COVID‐19, consumer recovery goals reveal increased desire for connection, novelty‐seeking, and positive behavioural change.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Connection and recovery in the COVID‐19 age: An analysis of changes in goal‐setting throughout the pandemic by consumers living with enduring mental illness

Patterson,

Roberts,

Yousiph

et al. 2023

Int J Mental Health Nurs

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“…Like exercise, sleep, and a healthy diet, 54 nature exposure may well be a necessary health behavior to promote longevity, prevent disease, and enhance wellbeing. 55-57 “Nature prescribing” by healthcare providers, a growing movement, can serve as a tool for health promotion with minimal cost, side effects, equipment needs, or training requirements. Few medications or existing interventions can match these qualities.…”

Section: The Value Of Nature Exposure In the 21st Centurymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Singular metrics for complex topics like nature exposure or economic performance (i.e., gross domestic product [GDP]) are prone to miss important parameters that should be considered. 76,77 Over-reliance on these metrics may lead to inadequately informed decisions in policy and practice. 76 Relatedly, the underlying data and algorithms in NatureScore TM are unlikely to fully represent the contextual and individual factors that determine whether a specific person benefits from nature at a specific location.…”

Section: Limitations and Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spending Time in Nature: The Overlooked Health Behavior

Maddock,

Johnson

2023

Am J Health Promot

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“…Complementing ambitions to increase and equalise green space access is the idea of (re)connecting people with natural environments via ‘social prescription’ mechanisms where health and social care professionals recommend patients and clients engage in activities such as community gardening as adjunct practices to routine medical care. Recent work shows that such nature‐based social prescribing receives strong interest among people with high potential to benefit (Astell‐Burt, Hipp, et al., 2023) and is also viewed as increasingly compelling by many health and social work professionals on the frontline of managing NCDs (Astell‐Burt, Pappas, et al., 2022; Sherman et al., 2021; Tambyah et al., 2022). Promisingly, early evidence indicates that interventions which enable nature contact in persons who have previously had little may help to sustain regular walking and to improve mental, physical and social health (Astell‐Burt, Hartig, et al., 2022; Nguyen et al., 2023).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring autonomous and controlled motivations for nature contact to maximise health benefits

Astell‐Burt,

Navakatikyan,

White

et al. 2024

People and Nature

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Increasing evidence indicates contact with nature supports mental, physical and social health. However, beyond a widely reported number of barriers to nature contact, the constellation of motivations for human contact with nature is under‐theorised and under‐studied. We begin to develop indicators of autonomous and controlled motivations for nature contact informed by self‐determination theory. These include intrinsic motivation (i.e. enjoyment), integrated regulation (alignment with identify and life goals), identified regulation (a means to an end), introjected regulation (emotional reasons like guilt avoidance) and external regulation (such as peer pressure). We compare these motivation indices in a nationally representative sample of 5082 adults in Australia in 2022 with the Nature Relatedness Scale (NR6), and also test associations between them and five outcomes: time spent in nature, smartphone use in nature, interest in nature prescriptions, physical activity and self‐rated health. Statistical analyses were adjusted for potential confounding. Results demonstrate people have complex mixtures of motivations with varying potency for visiting natural settings and the extent to which those motives are autonomous or controlled matters for what they do, and the benefits accrued. For example, our analyses show that more direct considerations of intrinsic, integrated and identified forms of autonomous motivation have superior explanatory power than the NR6 for time spent in nature, interest in nature prescriptions, adherence to physical activity recommendations and self‐rated health. External regulations emphasising peer approval were associated not only with no additional time in nature but also with more distractive activities when in natural environments, as defined by more smartphone and social media use while there. While introjected regulations emphasising guilt avoidance were associated with increased nature contact, they were similarly associated with time spent on smartphones and social media when in natural environments, which has been shown to undermine restoration. Synthesis and applications: We need to formally measure autonomous and controlled motivations for nature contact to better understand both why some people visit natural environments, and whether they are mindfully maximising the health benefits of those experiences. This will help to inform robust nature‐based interventions that are acceptable, effective and sustainable for everyone. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

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Need and Interest in Nature Prescriptions to Protect Cardiovascular and Mental Health: A Nationally-Representative Study With Insights for Future Randomised Trials

Cited by 19 publications

References 40 publications

Connection and recovery in the COVID‐19 age: An analysis of changes in goal‐setting throughout the pandemic by consumers living with enduring mental illness

Connection and recovery in the COVID‐19 age: An analysis of changes in goal‐setting throughout the pandemic by consumers living with enduring mental illness

Spending Time in Nature: The Overlooked Health Behavior

Exploring autonomous and controlled motivations for nature contact to maximise health benefits

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