Shinrin-yoku is a Japanese practice that involves spending time in the forest to take care of your health.
A Japanese tradition called “shinrin yoku”, which consists of immersing yourself in the forest for a walk, would effectively reduce stress, according to a new study.
Depression, lung or heart disease… Shinrin-yoku (which literally means “forest bath”) is a practice that consists of spending time in the forest to take care of your health. In Japan in 2018, more than fifty forest routes were marked, in combination with medical checkpoints, under the supervision of Chiba University and the Nippon Medical School in Tokyo. In 2012 alone, there were up to 5 million visitors practicing forest therapy courses.
Breathe ambient air for a long time
Recently, a group of Italian researchers set out to get a better idea of the effect of Shinrin-yoku on stress levels. They published their results in the International Journal of Biometeorology.
Scientists have defined shinrin yoku “as being in a forest, either walking or resting, but breathing the surrounding air for an extended period of time.” They then focused on cortisol, a steroid hormone that increases production during times of stress, which is easily measured in saliva samples.
Placebo effect
Following a meta-analysis of 22 pre-existing studies, the team found that cortisol levels were lower in people who regularly submerge in the forest, especially just before heading out to nature. “Shinrin-yoku is considered an anti-stress practice, and planning a forest walk appears to have a positive influence on cortisol levels, even before you physically interact with that environment. Therefore, the only projection is mental immersion in the forest can have a placebo effect, ”the researchers explain.
Often underestimated, stress is the cause of many pathologies. One in four employees today is too stressed at work, to the point of putting himself in danger. “We can make an analogy with hypertension: everyone has blood pressure, the problem is when we have too much”, explains to New Obs Doctor Patrick Légeron, psychiatrist at the Sainte-Anne hospital in Paris. The private sphere is not spared by the phenomenon, as recently demonstrated the facebook post of a mother in full burnout, which has gone viral on the web.
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