Tsunetsugu Yuko, Park Bum-Jin, Ishii Hideki, Hirano Hideki, Kagawa Takahide, Miyazaki Yoshifumi
Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, Ibaraki, Japan.
J Physiol Anthropol. 2007 Mar;26(2):135-42. doi: 10.2114/jpa2.26.135.
The physiological effects of "Shinrin-yoku" (taking in the atmosphere of the forest) were examined by investigating blood pressure, pulse rate, heart rate variability (HRV), salivary cortisol concentration, and immunoglobulin A concentration in saliva. Subjective feelings of being "comfortable", "calm", and "refreshed" were also assessed by questionnaire. The subjects were 12 male university students aged from 21 to 23 (mean+/-SD: 22.0+/-1.0). The physiological measurements were conducted six times, i.e., in the morning and evening before meals at the place of accommodation, before and after the subjects walked a predetermined course in the forest and city areas for 15 minutes, and before and after they sat still on a chair watching the scenery in the respective areas for 15 minutes. The findings were as follows. In the forest area compared to the city area, 1) blood pressure and pulse rate were significantly lower, and 2) the power of the HF component of the HRV tended to be higher and LF/(LF+HF) tended to be lower. Also, 3) salivary cortisol concentration was significantly lower in the forest area. These physiological responses suggest that sympathetic nervous activity was suppressed and parasympathetic nervous activity was enhanced in the forest area, and that "Shinrin-yoku" reduced stress levels. In the subjective evaluation, 4) "comfortable", "calm", and "refreshed" feelings were significantly higher in the forest area. The present study has, by conducting physiological investigations with subjective evaluations as supporting evidence, demonstrated the relaxing and stress-relieving effects of "Shinrin-yoku".
通过调查血压、脉搏率、心率变异性（HRV）、唾液皮质醇浓度和唾液中免疫球蛋白A浓度，研究了“森林浴”（吸入森林空气）的生理效应。还通过问卷调查评估了“舒适”“平静”和“清爽”的主观感受。受试者为12名年龄在21至23岁之间的男性大学生（平均±标准差：22.0±1.0）。生理测量进行了六次，即在住宿地早晚饭前、受试者在森林和城市地区沿预定路线步行15分钟前后，以及他们在各自区域坐在椅子上静赏风景15分钟前后。结果如下。与城市地区相比，在森林地区，1）血压和脉搏率显著更低，2）HRV的高频成分功率倾向于更高，低频/（低频+高频）倾向于更低。此外，3）森林地区的唾液皮质醇浓度显著更低。这些生理反应表明，森林地区交感神经活动受到抑制，副交感神经活动增强，且“森林浴”降低了压力水平。在主观评价中，4）森林地区“舒适”“平静”和“清爽”的感受显著更高。本研究通过进行生理调查并以主观评价作为支持证据，证明了“森林浴”的放松和减压效果。
