The Healing Power of Nature
We have all experienced those pristine moments in nature that make us feel whole. This is what we love best at Campers Village. Helping you find the moments that recharge you. That refresh your soul. The stories of your adventures mean the world to us. It’s why we do what we do.
It turns out that this experience is quite universal. Campers Village customers have long been attracted to the outdoors not just for the activities themselves, but because the simple act of connecting with nature feels good.
Nature is healthy, and healing. For body mind and spirit. When we stand in a forest, dip our toes in a glacial lake, and sit around a campfire, stress dissolves, and we are reinvigorated.
And now science is backing up these intuitive acts.
Vitamin N(ature)
Here’s what scientists are learning about the effects of nature on human health. Spending time in nature can:
- Lower heart rate
- Lower blood pressure
- Lower levels of cortisol (the stress hormone)
- Increase sense of wellbeing and joy
- Change brain waves (for the better)
- Improve mood
- Improve concentration
Stanford University did a study on people who walked for 90 minutes in a natural area on campus, and others who walked in an urban area. Guess what they found? The nature walkers showed decreased activity in a region of the brain that’s associated with a key factor in depression.
“Neural activity in the subgenual prefrontal cortex, a brain region active during rumination – repetitive thought focused on negative emotions – decreased among participants who walked in nature versus those who walked in an urban environment,” the study reports.
Doctors are now actively prescribing hiking for anxiety and depression.
There’s a growing library of evidence to suggest that spending time in nature is not only fun and rewarding, but also incredibly good for every aspect of your wellbeing.
Further reading:
- National Geographic: Call to the Wild: This is Your Brain on Nature
- Huffington Post: Here's Proof Going Outside Makes You Healthier
- CBC: Get outside and improve your health immediately
- Forbes: 10 Health Problems That The Outdoors Can Help Prevent And Treat
- Therm-A-Rest Blog: 10 Scientific Reasons for Getting Outside
- CBC: Forrest Bathing A practice with roots in Japan gains a foothold in Canada
- Osprey: How We Heal