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Health Benefits of Going to Parks

 

 

There are many health benefits of visiting parks. Parks and other green spaces have high levels of fresh air compared to other places. Parks also provide facilities for you to keep fit.

 

According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, regular park activity can help:

  • Control your weight

  • Reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease

  • Reduce your risk for Type 2 Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome

  • Reduce your risk of some cancers

  • Strengthen your bones and muscles

  • Improve your mental health and mood (Reduces stress)

  • Improve your mobility and agility, if you're an older adult

  • Increase your lifespan

 

A study done in Los Angeles has found that regular park users reported higher levels of trust and a greater willingness to help one another.

 

In a Dutch study of more than 10,000 households in the Netherlands, the greener a person's environment was, the less likely there were to be lonely or report a lack of social support. 


Japanese researchers have found that just 15 minutes of walking in a green environment lowers cortisol levels, pulse rate, and blood pressure. 
 

 

Image Courtesy of tammysyoga.co.uk

In another study, children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder had better concentration after a 20-minute walk in the park than if that walk had been taken through a neighborhood or downtown setting. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Several diseases, including depression, asthma, stroke and migraines, are less prevalent in greener neighborhoods.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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