The rapid development of physiological indicators has enabled evaluation of body responses such as cerebral activity (functional magnetic resonance imaging, near-infrared spectroscopy and electroencephalography ), autonomic nervous activity (heart rate variability, heart rate, pulse rate and blood pressure) and endocrine activity (salivary cortisol concentration). Of the five senses, the effectiveness of sight, smell and touch have been discussed. In particular, indoor experiments, where it is possible to control the stimuli and physical environment, entail more specific and diverse methodological approaches than those used in field experiments. Several study outcomes have shed light on the benefits of nature therapy, such as physiological relaxation and immunity function improvement, by direct exposure to natural environment and natural elements (flowers, green plants, or wooden materials ) or by indirect exposure to natural environments through a display or projector ). With the increasing social attention given to health and the development of physiological measurement devices, researchers have been collecting scientific data on nature therapy. Nature therapy is defined as “a set of practices aimed at achieving ‘preventive medical effects’ through exposure to natural stimuli that render a state of physiological relaxation and boost the weakened immune functions to prevent diseases”. In recent years, nature therapy has been proposed as one of the solutions for stress recovery and health promotion. In 1984, Ulrich reported that surgical patients who were assigned to rooms with windows overlooking natural scenery had shorter hospital stays and experienced fewer negative health outcomes than patients in rooms with windows facing the brick wall of a building. Environmental psychologists have discussed aesthetic and affective responses to the outdoor environment and the preference for natural scenery over urban landscapes, which lack natural elements. Since the late 20th century, the restorative effect of nature has been gradually gaining attention in the fields of environmental psychology and public health. In 2008, more than half of the world’s population lived in urban areas and by 2050, 69% of humans will live in urban areas. Urban environments, which account for a mere 0.01% of dwelling environments in human history, remain an unfamiliar environment for the human body. The start of the industrial revolution in the UK in the 18th century led to the rapid growth of industrialization and urbanization and significantly changed our living environments. Therefore, the physiological functions of human bodies developed in response to the natural environment. Accumulation of scientific evidence of the physiological relaxation associated with viewing elements of nature would be useful for preventive medicine, specifically nature therapy.įor approximately 6–7 million years, human beings have evolved in the natural environment. Studies that used real nature stimuli reported that visual contact with flowers, green plants, and wooden materials had positive effects on cerebral and autonomic nervous activities compared with the control. The majority of the studies that used display stimuli, such as photos, 3D images, virtual reality, and videos of natural landscapes, confirmed that viewing natural scenery led to more relaxed body responses than viewing the control. Thirty-seven articles presenting evidence of the physiological effects of viewing nature were selected. The articles were analyzed for their stimulation method, physiological measures applied, groups of participants, and outcomes. In this systematic review, we examined current peer-reviewed articles regarding the physiological effects of visual stimulation from elements or representations of nature in an indoor setting. A variety of physiological indicators adopted for use in indoor experiments have shown the benefits of viewing nature. Compared with studies of the other senses, studies investigating the visual effects of nature have been at the forefront of this research field. Contact with nature has been proposed as a solution to achieve physiological relaxation and stress recovery, and a number of scientific verification outcomes have been shown.
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