Know nature for health, happiness

One hundred years ago, on Aug. 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the act creating the National Park Service, providing protection for 35 established parks. Today, there are 407, from the most-visited Great Smoky Mountains National Park, with 10 million visitors a year, to the least-visited Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve in Alaska, with only around 11,000 visitors annually.

Seems millions and millions of you know that getting into any park (even if it’s just part of a city block) is good for you. And science backs you up. A multicenter U.S.-Canada study found that “knowing and experiencing nature makes us healthier, happier people.” And a University of Rochester study found that being around green spaces not only reduces stress and makes you feel better, but makes you behave better, too!

How much green time do you need? Australian researchers say 30 minutes a week minimum is what it takes to relax and reduce your risk for high blood pressure and depression. If everyone did that, they say, the prevalence of HBP would decrease by 9 percent and depression by 7 percent.

Our recommendation for green-space health boosters: Spend 30-60 minutes (with a pedometer and a buddy) walking, five times a week. Head for 10,000 steps daily — outside, when weather permits. (An after-dinner walk with the family is great!) Find a quiet spot and meditate for 10 minutes. You’ll avoid what’s being called Nature Deficient Disorder, which is afflicting everyone from screen-bound kids to housebound elders.

Texting and driving

In Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein,” the good doctor’s monster was brought to life by high-voltage electric shocks that jump-started the creature’s organs and brainwaves. According to a new study, these days all Dr. Frankenstein might need to get the monster going would be a smartphone!

Recent epilepsy research from the Mayo Clinic used an electroencephalogram to measure study participants’ brainwaves and found that for about 20 percent of folks, “cortical processing in the contemporary brain is uniquely activated by the use of PEDs” — personal electronic devices, such as a cellphone or iPad.

That’s right, for some of you, sending a text message changes the pattern of your brainwaves, creating what the scientists described as a “unique rhythm” that can’t be replicated by tapping a finger or even by talking through the same device.

Seems it takes extra effort and concentration to complete what the researchers called “nonauditory complex communication,” such as texting: For everyone, it consumes all your conscious attention and for one in five it alters your brainwaves.

So now we have a scientific explanation of why texting while driving (or crossing the street) is more dangerous than hands-free calling. (And hands-free is more dangerous than not doing it at all — 26 percent of car crashes involve use of a cellphone, including hands-free calling.) So heed the words on the digital sign that looms over the Holland Tunnel on your way from downtown Manhattan to New Jersey: “Pay Attention. Just Drive!”

The power of art

Presidents, it seems, are as inclined to doodle as the rest of us. During one meeting with legislative leaders, President Dwight D. Eisenhower drew himself as a bold nude (from the waist up) in front of gunboats. Lyndon Johnson often doodled three-faced figures, perhaps in recognition of the complexities of political loyalties.

And it seems doodling is productive. One study found that it can improve retention of info by 29 percent. In fact, producing any kind of art provides wonderful benefits to the creator.

A study published in the journal Art Therapy found that making art reduces your blood cortisol levels and calms down your stress responses. Another study found that artistic pursuits promote neurological changes that enhance resilience and defend against the toll chronic stress can take on cognitive functioning.

Get Kids Creating: It’s important for children at all grade levels to have access to art classes. One reason: Studies show that schools with established arts programs have students who do better both socially and academically. One study found that students with four years of art classes scored 91 points higher on their SAT exams than those who took half a year or less.

Adults Reap Big Benefits: The Creativity and Aging Study found that after a couple of years, “those involved in the weekly participatory art programs ... reported: (A) better health, fewer doctor visits and less medication usage; (B) more positive responses on the mental-health measures; (C) more involvement in overall activities.” Creating art also promotes healing when you’re coping with the aftermath of an illness.

Make change happen

When David Bowie penned the song “Changes” (“Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes/Turn and face the strange”), he was commenting on how challenging change can be. And if you’re like most folks, you, too, have a hard time making changes, even when you know you should.

For example, while 51 percent of Americans say they’d like to lose weight and get healthier, only around 26 percent are actively trying. And just about 20 percent of weight-shedding folks lose 10 percent of their body weight and keep it off for a year.

No wonder researchers (and we) keep trying to ID changes that will help you become successful weight-losers and healthy weight-maintainers. Some smart and simple changes include: eating a diet lower in calories and bad fats, eating breakfast, maintaining a consistent eating schedule and recruiting a weight-loss or exercise buddy. But how do you successfully follow through with those desired changes?

A study in Frontiers of Psychology gathered 44,000 folks and had them try different techniques that might make it easier to successfully accomplish a desired task. They found that the biggest boost came from using a brief self-talk (“I can do it!”) just before doing the task. Researchers suspect that the pat-on-the-back works best because it stimulates pleasant emotions, arouses interest in success and increases intensity about meeting your goal.

So adopt a mantra or make your own. Try “I can make this change, and I can make it stick!” Or before every meal or when confronted with between-meal snacks, tell yourself: “I’m makin’ it stick, because I can. I can do this!” It works!

This story was originally published July 25, 2016 at 10:57 PM with the headline "Know nature for health, happiness."