Is Viewing Water Outdoors More Restorative Than Green Spaces?

🌊 Is Viewing Water Outdoors More Restorative Than Green Spaces? 🌳

We know that viewing nature and being outdoors in nature’s bounty can be pleasant and restorative. But the next sentence may surprise you. A growing body of studies indicate that viewing water may be a better environment for relaxation than green areas with grass and trees.

I recently read an article by Harvard psychologist Adam Grant, PhD, discussing rather remarkable research showing that people who viewed water for less than two minutes had reduced blood pressure compared to people viewing green areas and trees (Coss & Keller, 2022; Grant, 2024).

A recent article in the Journal of Environmental Psychology suggests that there is an evolutionary basis for these findings about water – that for humans and the homonins before us, dehydration has always been a major stressor, causing increases in blood pressure and cardiac stress (Coss & Keller, 2022). They postulate that successfully detecting water to rehydrate is an evolutionary necessity, a result of natural selection, and a source of relief from thermal (heat) stress.

Interestingly, even viewing projected slides of landscape images with water produced “more wakefully relaxed brain activity compared with urban scenes” (Coss & Keller, 2022). While this new study distinguishes an advantage for actual water spaces, even images of natural views and spaces are good for us.

So what? Do you experience days when the challenges of everyday life feel like a lot, maybe even overwhelming?

Spending time in nature’s blue and green spaces is linked to improvements in mental health, mood, emotional wellbeing and cognitive benefits (Weir, American Psychological Association, 2020). As vulnerable humans, whatever the season, most of us are looking for ways to relax and calm ourselves. Especially in the summer! I don’t know about you, but I grew up believing that weekends, holidays, and summer should be an easier, more relaxing time – that as long as I wear sunscreen and drink enough water, there would be a certain sense of respite during these special times.

But for many of us, how we thought it should be is not how it is. Hopefully, we get some respite, but most of us are still going about our daily tasks, tackling life’s challenges and trying to somehow make a positive impact to benefit our families, workplaces, and communities. So, at times we’re thirsty for some moments of rest, relaxation, and wellbeing, and this is why this surprising information can be so important to consider.

Being in nature can help reinvigorate our body, mind, and spirit, offering moments of awe, calm, and relaxation. And now we are learning that bodies of water may bring us even greater relaxation. Whether stream, river, pond, lake, or ocean, viewing water can be really good for us. So, let’s try to get outside more. (U.C. Davis, 2023). And maybe add an image or two of watery expanses to our indoor spaces. Or at least add one of more images of nature to our indoor spaces.

Here are 6 simple ways to experience blue and green surroundings:

1. 🖼️ Hang up some images of nature in your home.

2.🧺 Plan a picnic at the park or near a stream, river, or lake.

3.📖 Take a book to the park and read on a bench or under a shady tree.

4.🚶‍♀️ Meet a friend for a walk outdoors.

5.🏞️ View videos or slides of outdoor scenes on your computer – Maybe a water landscape screensaver for your electronic device.

6.☀️ Stand outside and look around at the sky.

 

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. No content is a substitute for consulting with a qualified mental health or healthcare professional.

© 2024 Ilene Berns-Zare, LLC, All Rights Reserved

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References:

• Coss, R. G., & Keller, C. M. (2022). Transient decreases in blood pressure and heart rate with increased subjective level of relaxation while viewing water compared with adjacent ground. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 81, 101794.
• Grant, A. (2024). The ideal place to relax on holidays and weekends. 
• UC Davis Health. (May 3, 2023). 3 ways getting out in nature helps improve your health.
• Weir, K. (2020). Nurtured by nature: Psychological research is advancing our understanding of how time in nature can improve our mental health and sharpen our cognition.  American Psychological Association 51(3).

Ilene is a Featured Author on PsychologyToday!
Read her blog series Flourish and Thrive: Navigating transitions with mindfulness and resilience.

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