Green spaces contribute to the well-being of city dwellers

Green spaces appease city dwellers in need of greenery. Researchers at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany have found that green spaces made up of trees, shrubs, lawns and flowers do people good. This research is the result of an interdisciplinary study in which the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) participated. The results also highlight that people with a tendency to be pessimistic derive the greatest benefit from green spaces.

The study, published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, was jointly conducted by researchers from the Institute of Sport and Sports Science (IfSS) at KIT, the Central Institute for Mental Health (CIMH), Mannheim and the University of Heidelberg. The teams involved 33 city dwellers between the ages of 18 and 28. They asked them to rate their mood, about nine times a day for a week, using smartphones specially equipped for this study. Additionally, geo-information methods were used and participants were also examined through functional magnetic resonance imaging, which depicts certain brain functions. “We adopted an interdisciplinary approach combining methods from epidemiology, psychology, neuroimaging and geoinformatics,” said Professor Ulrich Ebner-Priemer, Deputy Director of IfSS and Head of the Mental mHealth Lab, specialized in outpatient assessment.

The larger the green spaces, the higher the well-being

The study highlights that in neighborhoods with large green spaces, city dwellers experience greater well-being. The researchers found that people who reacted positively to green zones had reduced activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (the part of the brain that controls the processing of negative emotions and stressful environmental experiences). The researchers also assessed the proportion of green space in the neighborhoods, using high-resolution aerial photos and geo-information systems. “With our methods, it was possible to determine whether exposure to green spaces in cities directly changes the well-being of the people tested”, explains Markus Reichert of the Mental mHealth Lab.

Urban planning can be used to promote health

Currently, according to UN data, more than half of the world’s inhabitants (55%) live in urban areas. Previous studies have also shown that people who grow up and live in cities react differently to stress than rural residents. Therefore, urban planning becomes an imperative part of the health policy dialogue. “The results of the study are of great interest for urban planning taking into account health aspects,” said Professor Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg, Chairman of the CIMH Executive Board and Medical Director of the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy. .