Health Benefits of Nature for Children
This project uses published literature to highlight the benefits of nature on the health and wellness of youth ages 2-18.
Across the Greater Rochester region children are spending less and less time in nature. Whether from the overscheduling of after school activities, an abundance of screen time, a lack of unstructured activities, or a combination of these factors, the reality still stands that the rise in ‘nature-deficit disorder’ is a real and a major contributor to many developmental disorders. Children are being pulled away from the outdoors, effectively removing one of the greatest teachers we have – mother nature.
Project Objectives
- Share measurements that demonstrate effectiveness of nature contact
- Identify activities that lead to greatest improvement in health
- Communicate the importance of nature contact as a strategy for improving health in young people
Children Need Nature
The benefits from time spent outdoors are immense. From positively impacting our physical well-being to improving social-emotional health, nature is an essential part of our lives. Over the last several decades, humans have become increasingly detached from their natural world.
By taking young people outside, and exposing them to the world around them, we can enrich their social emotional wellbeing and improve academic performance, all while better preparing the next generation with the critical thinking skills needed to tackle future challenges.
With benefits to your mental, physical, and emotional health, it is critical we shift the tide and make nature a part of our everyday lives – playing, learning, and working in the outdoors.
Youth in Greater Rochester Need More Nature
- 88% of children under 18 are getting less than 1 hour of daily physical activity
- 32% of students in Monroe County reported depression symptoms
- 72% of students in Monroe County spent 3+ hours on an average school day using a computer or smartphone for something that is not school work
The average American child spends only 4-7 minutes a day in unstructured outdoor play, while logging 7.5 hours in front of electronic screens.
How Nature Helps
Mental Health
- Develops critical thinking skills
- Increases creativity and imagination
- Improves problem solving skills
Physical Health
- Reduces nearsightedness
- Increases vitamin D levels
- Reduces risk of childhood obesity
Emotional Health
- Improves social connections
- Decreases stress, anger, and aggression
- Increases self-esteem
Getting Enough Nature
The research shows that pretty much any exposure to nature can produce health benefits. There is however a continuum of quality and impact that can be found within certain characteristics of a child’s experience with nature.
The health benefits of nature depend on:
- Frequency and Duration – Finding nature often and for extended lengths of time produces the most benefits but any amount of time at any frequency is good for children.
- Natural Environments – A natural physical environment that is rich with life is ideal and at the same time a houseplant on a windowsill has a positive impact on health.
- Social Situations – There is a tremendous benefit to experiencing nature with others. It is also beneficial for children to experience nature alone (with supervision).
- Activity Type – Activities that bring youth into direct contact with nature in ways that engage all of their senses are most beneficial to health but research shows indirect exposure to nature is also positive.
“Time in nature is not leisure time;
it’s an essential investment in our children’s health”
~ Richard Louv
Key Research
What are the benefits of interacting with nature?
This study looks at the benefits of nature interaction on physiological, cognitive, psychological, social, and spiritual health of the individual. With a focus on high latitudes and western societies, especially those within North America, they look at indirect, incidental, and intentional interactions with nature and the benefits that arise from these experiences.
Keniger, L., Gaston, K., Irvine, K., & Fuller, R. (2013). What are the Benefits of Interacting with Nature? International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 10(3), 913–935. MDPI AG.
Growing up green: a systematic review of the influence of greenspace on youth development and health outcomes
This report analyzes twenty-eight studies, covering cognitive and brain development, mental health, attention and behavior, allergy and respiratory issues, and obesity, determining that, overall, 79% of the studies indicated a positive association between greenspace and improved youth development.
Sprague, N.L., Bancalari, P., Karim, W. et al. Growing up green: a systematic review of the influence of greenspace on youth development and health outcomes. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 32, 660–681 (2022).
Health Benefits from Nature Experiences Depend on Dose
The study emphasizes the significant role of nature within cities in addressing global public health challenges linked with urbanization. The research explores the associations between the duration, frequency, and intensity of exposure to nature and urban health. Findings indicate that longer visits to green spaces are positively linked to lower rates of depression and high blood pressure, while more frequent visits contribute to greater social cohesion. Increased physical activity is associated with both the duration and frequency of green space visits. The study suggests that weekly outdoor visits to green spaces lasting 30 minutes or more could potentially reduce the population prevalence of depression and high blood pressure by up to 7% and 9%, respectively.
Why Your Kids Should Spend Time Outdoors
This article looks specifically at the connection between childhood health and time spent outdoors. It touches on the science behind nature-based learning, with over 400 studies positively connecting exposure to green spaces with better health (healtier weight, lower stress levels, better vision, and a stronger immune system). Furthermore, time spent learning outdoors helps improve a student’s attention span, behavior, and memory. Children today spend an average of 4-7 minutes a day in unstructured outdoor play – 35% less than when their parents were children.
Rochester Ecology Partners has seen the rift between kids and the outdoors, and is actively working to mend that through nature-based learning and programming that deeply connects children with their natural surroundings and improves community connectedness through the power of nature. Our organization hopes to improve individual, community and environmental health and contribute to an educational system that connects people in our city, in particular youth and families, to nature in the places where they live, work and play.
Project Sponsors
This project is made possible with generous support from:
- Browncroft Pediatric Research Foundation
- AES
- Our generous donors
Please reach out if you are interested in supporting this project.
contact@rocecology.org
Support Our Work
You can help us in two ways. When you donate to Rochester Ecology Partners you make it possible for us to provide nature-based experiences to children and further our understanding of how those experiences contribute to their health and wellness.
Stories about the Health Benefits of Nature
Into the Summer: The Benefits of Unstructured Outdoor Play for Kids
Summer is here! Whether building fairy houses, hunting for bugs in the yard, or using their muscles to climb a tree, the many ways kids can engage in imaginative play outside is my favorite aspect of summer break. Wonder can lead kids on the best adventures and...
Nature and Health Outcomes for Children Grant
We are excited to announce that Rochester Ecology Partners (REP) was awarded a $5,000 grant the Browncroft Pediatric Research Foundation to coalesce the science behind the benefits of nature-based learning with the health and wellness of Rochester’s children. In addition, REP will leverage this grant to develop a tool to assess the impact of our programs on health and social/emotional wellbeing of participants. This project will help bring forward the ultimate benefits found from REP’s educational programming and mission to connect all people to nature where they live, work, and play.
Where is Everyone? – Going Outside with AMDA School #12
Where is everyone? This question makes the class of kindergarteners crouched in the vegetable garden behind their school giggle, laugh, and do other joyful things that quickly reveal their hiding spots. We were outside to play and do many other important things on this crisp fall morning.