Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane 4072, Australia.
Department of Ecosystem Services, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), 04318 Leipzig, Germany.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Sep 27;18(19):10149. doi: 10.3390/ijerph181910149.
A growing number of policies and programmes in cities aim to increase the time people spend in nature for the health and wellbeing benefits delivered by such interactions. Yet, there is little research investigating the extent to which, and for whom, nature experiences deliver such benefits outside Europe, North America, and Australia. Here, we assessed the relationships between nature dose (frequency, duration, and intensity) and three mental wellbeing (depression, stress, and anxiety) and two physical health (high blood pressure, diabetes) outcomes in Singapore, an intensely urbanised tropical city. Our analyses accounted for individual factors, including socio-economic status, nature connection (nature relatedness), and whether people with poor health are prevented by their condition from visiting green spaces. Our results show that the association between nature dose (specifically duration) and mental wellbeing is moderated by a nature connection. Specifically, people with a stronger nature connection were less likely to be depressed, stressed, and anxious, regardless of the duration of their nature dose. For those with a weaker connection to nature, spending longer in nature was associated with being more depressed, stressed, and anxious. We did not find a relationship between nature dose and high blood pressure or diabetes. Our results highlight that the relationship between nature dose and wellbeing might vary substantially among cities.
越来越多的城市政策和项目旨在增加人们在自然中花费的时间，以获得这种互动带来的健康和福利。然而，几乎没有研究调查在欧洲、北美和澳大利亚以外的地区，自然体验在多大程度上、对哪些人能带来这些好处。在这里，我们评估了新加坡（一个高度城市化的热带城市）的自然剂量（频率、持续时间和强度）与三种心理健康（抑郁、压力和焦虑）和两种身体健康（高血压、糖尿病）结果之间的关系。我们的分析考虑了个体因素，包括社会经济地位、与自然的联系（与自然的相关性），以及身体状况不佳的人是否因身体状况而无法前往绿地。我们的结果表明，自然剂量（特别是持续时间）与心理健康之间的关联受到与自然的联系的调节。具体来说，无论自然剂量的持续时间如何，与自然联系更紧密的人不太可能感到抑郁、压力大和焦虑。对于与自然联系较弱的人来说，在自然中花费的时间越长，他们就越有可能感到沮丧、紧张和焦虑。我们没有发现自然剂量与高血压或糖尿病之间的关系。我们的结果表明，自然剂量与幸福感之间的关系可能在不同的城市之间有很大的差异。
