Physical and mental health effects of repeated short walks in a blue space environment: A randomised crossover study

Vert, Cristina; Gascón, Mireia; Ranzani, Otávio T.; Márquez, Sandra; Triguero-Mas, Margarita; Carrasco-Turigas, Glòria; Arjona, Lourdes; Koch, Sarah; Llopis, María Ángeles Orts; Donaire-González, David; Elliott, Lewis R.; Nieuwenhuijsen, Mark

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2020.109812

Cited by 61 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 54 publications

(102 reference statements)

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“…Relevant studies have pointed out that after outdoor group walks, the perception of restorativeness and naturalness influence each other, thus enhancing the positive emotional experience [ 24 ]. In addition, walking is an enjoyable form of exercise that can alleviate individuals’ anxiety [ 40 , 41 , 42 ] and depression [ 8 , 43 ], and enhance their mental well-being [ 44 , 45 , 46 ]. Wensley et al [ 29 ] described walking as a kind of joy and considered it a source of positive emotions, and Kekäläinen et al [ 25 ] found that walking was associated with better psychological well-being.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Relationship between Walking and Emotional Health in China

Zhu

Chen

et al. 2020

IJERPH

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Walking has a positive impact on people’s emotional health. However, in the case of serious air pollution, it is controversial whether walking exercise can still improve individuals’ emotional health. Using data from the 2014 wave of the China Labor-Force Dynamics Survey, this study explored the relationship between walking and emotional health with different levels of environmental pollution. The results indicated that respondents who took regular walks had better emotional health than those who did not walk regularly. For those whose main mode of physical exercise was walking, the average number of walks per week was significantly and positively correlated with their emotional health; however, the average duration of the walk had no significant impact on their emotional health. Moreover, for those whose main mode of physical exercise was walking and who lived in neighborhoods with a polluted environment, regular walking still had a positive impact on their emotional health. This suggests that even if environmental pollution is serious, walking still plays an important role in regulating individuals’ mental health. We propose that in order to promote the emotional health of residents, it is necessary to create more public spaces for outdoor activities and simultaneously increase efforts to control environmental pollution.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Relationship between Walking and Emotional Health in China

Zhu

Chen

et al. 2020

IJERPH

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“…Originally developed by McNair, Loor, and Droppleman in 1971 [ 47 ], this is a well-established, academic, and clinically validated measure of psychological distress and mental wellbeing consisting of 65 mood state questions grouped into 6 categories. POMS questionnaires have been used in a similar study that assessed the effects of medium-term exposure to blue and urban spaces on the mental health of participants undertaking various days of walking routines [ 23 ]. For this study, we used the 29-item version established by Fuentes et al (1995) [ 48 ], which divides mood states into 5 mood categories and explains 92.9% of the covariance of the original questionnaire: tension/anxiety (TA), depression (D), anger/hostility (AH), fatigue (F), and vigor (V).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Evidence suggests that living or undertaking moderate physical activity near blue spaces such as the coast, lakes, or rivers is associated with better general health and wellbeing. It reduces anxiety and depression [ 17 , 18 , 19 ], creates opportunities for social interactions [ 4 ], and is linked to a better general mood [ 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 ]. However, the majority of these studies have focused on the salutogenic effects (i.e., the promotion and maintenance of physical and mental wellbeing) of being close to a water body, rather than being in direct contact with it.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Beneficial Effects of Short-Term Exposure to Scuba Diving on Human Mental Health

Carreño

Gascón

Vert

et al. 2020

IJERPH

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Exposure to outdoor blue spaces can help improve human health by reducing stress, promoting social relationships, and physical activity. While most studies have focused on the adverse health effects of scuba diving, very few have assessed its health benefits. Moreover, when scuba diving is done in large groups with no diving instructor or pre-dive briefing, negative environmental impacts are generated and negative impacts on human health may also occur due to overcrowding, which may create stress. This is the first study to evaluate the effects of scuba diving on divers’ mental health using their diving practices to estimate the impacts on the ecosystem. In the marine-protected area of Cap de Creus and adjacent areas, we assessed the mental health of 176 divers and 70 beach users (control group) by employing a 29-item version of Profile of Mood State (POMS) questionnaires. According to the parameters associated with reduced environmental impacts, two scuba diving experiences were established. Poisson regression models were performed to assess both the contribution of the activity and diving experiences to POMS scores. Both groups (scuba divers and beach goers) reduced their POMS scores after carrying out the activities. Although no significant differences were found between beach and scuba diving activities, nor between the two different scuba diving experiences, our results showed that subjects with regular medication intake due to a chronic or psychiatric illness had a POMS reduction score significantly higher than other subjects. We conclude that both beach and scuba diving activities have positive effects for human mental health, particularly among subjects with regular medication intake.

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“…Significant and increasing evidence demonstrates that walking and staying in an urban forest setting can bring mental wellbeing by generating positive emotions or countering negative emotions [12,13]. Relevant studies were usually conducted using a crossover design [14][15][16]. Therein, subjects in forest settings were taken as respondents while the controlled subjects spent time in urban settings and they would exchange routes the next day [14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Can Urban Forest Settings Evoke Positive Emotion? Evidence on Facial Expressions and Detection of Driving Factors

Liu

Xia

et al. 2021

Sustainability

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There is increasing interest in experiences of urban forests because relevant studies have revealed that forest settings can promote mental well-being. The mental response to a forest experience can be evaluated by facial expressions, but relevant knowledge is limited at large geographical scales. In this study, a dataset of 2824 photos, detailing the evaluated age (toddler, youth, middle-age, and senior citizen) and gender of urban forest visitors, was collected from Sina Weibo (a social media application similar to Twitter in China) between 1–7 October 2018, in 12 randomly chosen cities in China. Happy and sad expressions were rated as scores by FireFACE software V1.0, and the positive response index (PRI) was calculated by subtracting sad scores from happy scores. Regional environmental factors were collected to detect driving forces using regression analyses. Happy scores were higher in forests than in urban settings, while sad scores for toddlers were lower in forests than in promenades and squares. Females showed more positive emotional expressions than males. Increases in happy scores were driven by the increase of daily minimum temperature; while PRI declined with increases in latitude. Overall, an urban forest experience can evoke positive emotions, which is likely due to comfortable feelings in warm temperatures.

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Physical and mental health effects of repeated short walks in a blue space environment: A randomised crossover study

Cited by 61 publications

References 54 publications

Exploring the Relationship between Walking and Emotional Health in China

Exploring the Relationship between Walking and Emotional Health in China

The Beneficial Effects of Short-Term Exposure to Scuba Diving on Human Mental Health

Can Urban Forest Settings Evoke Positive Emotion? Evidence on Facial Expressions and Detection of Driving Factors

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