Live in a city? A chirpy, greener area might make you happier: study
Global News
Canadian city-dwellers surrounded by a symphony of birds and a variety of trees might be reaping surprising benefits: better mental health.
Canadian city-dwellers surrounded by a symphony of birds and a variety of trees might be reaping surprising benefits: better mental health.
A Canadian study, published in Nature last month, found that living in a city neighbourhood rich with bird diversity and tree species was linked to increased reporting of good mental health.
The study found that people living in areas with a greater variety of birds reported feeling happier by 6.64 per cent. Similarly, those living near a wider range of tree species reported 5.36-per cent higher rates of good mental health.
These increases were seen even when considering other factors like socioeconomic status.
“We found that there was a positive association between mental health and the diversity of trees and the diversity of birds in people’s postcodes,” explained Rachel Buxton, the study’s lead author and assistant professor at the Institute of Environmental Science at Carleton University.
“There is a whole wealth of other research that shows taking a walk in nature is super good for your mental health and your physical health. So ours is just one piece of this literature and the story that’s saying, ‘It’s great medicine for your mental and physical health to go outside and be in nature’,” she told Global News.
In any given year, one in five Canadians experiences a mental illness, according to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).
As the population continues to age and urbanize, it is estimated that within a generation, 8.9 million Canadians will be living with a mental illness, the Mental Health Commission of Canada reports.