Spending time in nature or close to water is linked to better physical and mental health in multiple studies and the latest neuroscience research seeks to explore why and how being in nature boosts our wellbeing.

Our bodies have measurably different physical responses to being in a natural landscape compared to an urban setting. Natural environments are associated with lower heart rate, reduced blood pressure, lower inflammation, blood sugar and cholesterol levels, better functioning of the immune system and lower risk of cardiovascular disease.

Levels of the ‘stress hormone’ cortisol fall when exposed to nature, easing anxiety and depression, and increasing feelings of wellbeing. Scientists believe that exposure to nature activates the parasympathetic nervous system that relaxes your body after periods of stress or danger, and regulates life-sustaining processes, like heart rate and breathing, during times when you feel safe and relaxed.

Neuroimaging tools are helping researchers to glimpse the changes in our brains during nature exposure in real time, seeing reduced activity in the prefrontal cortex of the brain involved in thinking and decision-making, bringing feelings of calm and restoration. In nature, we can allow our attention to wonder naturally, compared to an urban setting where our brain struggles to make sense of the noise and pace of the modern world.

Neuroscientists believe that there is something about nature that engages the brain in a way that’s very undemanding and effortless. We are attracted to particular features of the natural world, like the predominance of curved lines over straight lines, as in the shape of a hill or a meandering river. We are drawn to the colours of nature, and light and reflections on water. Our brains even respond to fractals, the repeated patterns found in nature, such as the branching of a tree, a fern leaf or the rivulets in an estuary.

Scientists believe that humans function better in natural environments because our brains and bodies evolved in, and with, nature. This growing body of research is demonstrating that for good health and for our brains to work optimally, we need to spend time in natural environments and even that the positive effect of nature is stronger in wilder places with greater diversity and

abundance of animal and plant species than less species-rich areas – not good news for us in the UK in one of the world’s most nature-depleted nations!

Researchers recommend daily time in nature, somewhere that you find pleasant and engaging, such as beside moving water or trees. Choose somewhere you feel safe and comfortable to allow your mind to wander and relax; the feeling of ‘getting away’ from everyday troubles helps to achieve a sense of calm and wellbeing. Limit the use of technology, like phones or wearing headphones, which prevent you from engaging all your senses with the environment.

Swapping a municipal park or uninteresting farmland for a wilder, more natural setting rich in species further boosts the health benefits. A daily dose of the restorative power of nature may be just what the doctor ordered.