Loneliness is significant mental health concern and can raise risk of death by 45%, say scientists
. People were prompted at three random times a day for a fortnight, during waking hours, to answer simple questions on loneliness, overcrowding, social inclusion and contact with nature.
More than 750 people provided 16,600 of these assessments, which included the questions “do you feel welcome among [the people around you]?” and “can you see trees right now?”. The participants were self-selecting and so did not provide a representative sample of the wider populations. But when the researchers took age, ethnicity, education, and occupation into account, the benefits of nature contact and feelings of social inclusion on loneliness remained strongly statistically significant.
Christopher Gidlow, a professor of applied health research at Staffordshire University in the UK, who was not involved in the research, said: “It has long been recognised that having access to natural environments can foster social interactions and connectedness. This study adds further weight to existing evidence of our affinity for natural environments and the potential benefits for social wellbeing.
“Familiarity with environments was not measured, but is likely to be at play as people tend to visit the same natural environments. Such familiarity has been linked with feeling more connected to a place, with possible mental health benefits.”and part of the research team, said: “Cities are probably the only habitat that is increasing at a high rate. So we should be creating urban habitats where people can thrive.
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