Living near the forest is good for the mental health of children and youth

http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00751-1 

Explanation

A study led by scientists at UCL and Imperial College London has shown a link between children and young people's proximity to forests and improved cognitive development and a lower risk of emotional and behavioral problems.

The researchers used longitudinal data on 3,568 children and teens aged 9-15 from 31 schools in London. They also examined the association between different types of natural urban environments and students' cognitive development, mental health, and overall well-being, and used satellite data to calculate each adolescent's daily exposure rate to each of these environments within 50, 100, 250, and 500 meters of their home or school.

After adjusting for other variables, the results showed that higher daily exposure to forest (not grassland) was associated with higher scores in cognitive development and a 16% lower risk of emotional and behavioral problems two years later.

They also found that these effects were seen in the green space, with higher cognitive development scores, but not in the blue space. This result led the researchers to state that the cohort's access to blue spaces was generally low.