Health & Wellness Benefits of Forest Bathing

There have been numerous studies about the health and wellness benefits from time spent in nature. Intuitively, most of us know that after spending peaceful time in nature we feel an improvement in our mood or happiness—this is why we keep going back! And this makes sense, because we are part of nature, not something separate.

If you are curious about the science behind the benefits of spending time in nature, here is a well organized website with links to many interesting studies:

Dose of Nature - Forest Bathing

In summary, the practice of Forest Bathing has been shown to:

• Reduce blood pressure

• Improve heart rate variability

• Suppress sympathetic “fight or flight” system

• Enhance parasympathetic “rest and recover” system

• Increase Natural Killer (cancer fighting) white blood cells

• Create an improved overall sense of well-being

• Improve cognitive functioning such as focus and creativity

Participants have found lasting impacts from forest bathing sessions, sometimes weeks after a session. A regular practice of forest bathing, which can be done with or without a guide, leads to even more lasting effects. If you are interested in learning how to guide yourself, check out this book, by the founder of ANFT:

Your Guide to Forest Bathing by Amos Clifford