Healing Gardens, Part 2: Natural Longevity

It feels instinctive, especially to us garden lovers, that being surrounded by nature is a positive influence on human health, so I was intrigued when I came upon some research from the University of Glasgow that compared land use and human health. Link is here: (https://www.hutton.ac.uk/research/projects/green-health).

The research here shows that neighborhoods with lots of “green space” (forests, municipal gardens, parks, etc.) tended to have lower risk of early mortality. Of course, not even plants can save us from inevitable death, but according to the research, your likelihood  of living a long life goes up when surrounded by green space. 

Pictured above, an inviting bench placed in in front of yellow tulips, the perfect place to stop and take a rest.

The researchers also considered other factors, like socio-economic status and level of financial stress, access to good health care, and nutrition. Green space again stood out as a great equalizer, minimizing the effects of gaps that socio-economic burdens and other stressors bring to the mortality rate. 

Being Garden Girl, I had always suspected that gardens, and especially Healing Gardens, are good for your overall well-being. It’s nice to have university research that supports this notion.