TEXAS, USA — The relationship between the outdoors and human health is a strong one, and the research on it goes back to the 1980s at Texas A&M University.
Today, it is continued on through the Center for Health & Nature.
"They looked at hospital patients that had been in for surgery and either got sent to a room that had a view of a park or a view of a parking lot," Texas A&M Regents Professor Jay Maddock said. "They found those that had the view of the park out the window, were discharged earlier, took fewer pain medications, and had fewer post-op complications."
Dr. Maddock is leading a statewide collaboration with Houston Methodists and Texans by Nature to conduct scientific research and promote healthier living by getting outside more.
"All the time people spend on either their cell phone or on streaming services and how much time we spend indoors," Maddock said. "We find that more than 50% of Americans spend less than five hours a week outdoors."
Maddock says there are long-term health benefits from being outdoors regularly. Some of those health benefits include improved mood, lowered blood pressure levels, a reset of our attention spans, and even improved immune function.
"If I had a pill to give you all the benefits of spending time in nature, it would be the best-selling medicine that we had out there," Maddock said. "I often tell people that if I could give you a placebo and tell you to go take a walk for 30 minutes in a wooded area, you get the most amazing benefits."
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