Week 10: Nature as Health Promotion Flashcards
How many people globally live in urban environments?
50%
How many people in Canada live urban?
80%
In 1910, this was 20%
What are the benefits of living urban?
Access to amenities
Good access to food
Better drinking water and sanitation - public amenities
Urban tree cover trends
Number of street and park trees increasing
Amount of natural cover is decreasing
NR-6
Nature relatedness survey
Indirect interaction with nature
Experiencing nature while not being physically present in it
ie. viewing in a picture
Incidental interaction with nature
Experiencing nature as a by-product of another activity
ie. walking to work
Intentional interaction with nature
Experiencing or being in nature through direct intention
Indoor setting
Inside a building
Foliage plants
Urban setting
Landscape dominated by urban form
Public or private green-space, roadside vegetation
Fringe setting
Area immediately surrounding a town/city
Peri-urban nature reserves
Production landscape setting
Agriculture lands
Paddocks, fields, countryside
Wilderness landscape setting
Area where human influence is low
Beaches, ocean, river, water, mountain, forests, woodlands, national parks
Specific species setting
Cases where object of the interaction is defined with no particular setting
Marine animals, avian, domestic pets
Psychological well being benefits of nature
Positive effects on mental processes
Increased self-esteem, improved mood, reduced anger/frustration, psychological well being, reduced anxiety, improved behaviour
Cognitive benefits of nature
Positive effect on cognitive function or ability
Attentional restoration, reduced mental fatigue, improved academic performance, improved ability to perform tasks, improved cognitive function, improved productivity, educational/learning opportunities
Physiological benefits of nature
Positive effect on physical function and physical health
Stress reduction, reduced blood pressure, reduced cortisol levels, reduced headaches, reduced mortality from circulatory disease, faster healing, addiction recovery, improved perceived health, reduced long-term illness from cardiovascular/respiratory disease, reduced occurrence of illness
Social benefits of nature
Positive social effect at individual, community or national scale
Facilitates social interaction, enables social empowerment, reduced crime rates, reduced violence, enables interractial interaction, social cohesion, social support
Spiritual benefit of nature
Positive effect on individual religious pursuits or spiritual well being
Increased inspiration, increased spiritual well being
Tangible benefit of nature
Material goods than an individual can accrue for wealth of possession
Food supply, money, increased property value
Nature’s pharmacy
Trees
Source of pharmaceuticals and other chemical products used in conventional and alternative medicine
Functional molecules, bioactive protective susbstances
Greenspace/bluespace influences on human health (3)
1) Reducing harm (mitigation)
2) Restoring capacity (restoration)
3) Building capacity (instoration)
Emerald ash borer
Killed lots of trees
Increase in respiratory-related deaths and cardiovascular-related deaths
Allergy
Birch, hazel and alder have variable allergenic potency
Pollen-induced respiratory allergy more common in urban areas
