Why people living next to a park could have better health outcomes than their neighbours
New research has discovered benefits of living near green spaces that most people may not be aware of.
Changing your route to work could improve your health if you wander through forests, parks and other natural spaces. It’s just one way Aussies can help expose their bodies to a more complex mix of beneficial bacteria that’s generally not present in cities and industrial spaces.
But research published in the journal Environmental Research by University of Adelaide and Flinders University is urging city planners and architects to create more green spaces, so residents don’t have to make behavioural changes to improve their health.
The study highlights the link between human physiology and microorganisms that have evolved in “direct and intimate contact” over two million years. It warns that 68 per cent of the world’s population will live in urban environments by 2050, and changes are needed to stop a rise in allergies.
That's because if our bodies aren't trained with exposure to complex microbes, our immune system can overact when it encounters them, resulting in allergies, asthma, and autoimmune diseases.
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Why it's important to live near a large park
At the centre of the research is a recommendation that cities need to be designed so residents are living in close proximity to green spaces. And we’re not just talking about small reserves — large parks are more likely to house a functioning complex ecosystem with a diversity of microbes.
The paper’s lead author, PhD candidate Kate Matthews, explained that the make up of this tiny world is similar to that of large forests.
“A healthy soil ecosystem is like a forest or grassland where the birds eat the bugs, and the bugs eat the plants, but in this case it’s just on a tiny level. And there’s thousands and thousands more bugs, and thousands and thousands more plants,” she told Yahoo News.
“When you increase the diversity of plants, you're also increasing the microbes that are attracted to those plants. Some might like eucalyptus, while others might like grasses or shrubs.
“And we have no idea how much we’ve lost through urbanisation.”
Her research cites a World Health Organization recommendation that urban residents should have at least one public green space of at least half a hectare within 300 metres of their home.
It calls on designers to consider exposing those who live inside their buildings to plants — like having windows that can open, or real indoor plants.
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