Does Green Therapy Improve Mental Health?
“Adopt the pace of nature. Her secret is patience.”- Ralph Waldo Emerson
In the modern age, it has been suggested that people have lost something.
The digital saturation of smartphones and living in the city seems to be commonplace now and it has been suggested by Kings College London (2023) that this has led to the rise or complexity of mental health issues.
The act of taking a walk in the woods, sitting in a field, or even walking through a meadow has fallen by the wayside. Even walking a dog in a park is now seen as something which few people have the time to do but, studies have found that stepping away from the screens and into the green space has a profound effect on mental health.
This is not a new idea. In the early 1980’s, a practice known as Shinrin-Yoku, or Forest bathing, became a part of the culture in Japan and China. It was developed to help people cope with rapid urbanization, as well as tackle the country’s rising rates of stress and work-related burnout. In the west, this practice has been dubbed as green therapy, ecotherapy, or nature therapy and, it is starting to make its way in to mental health circles.
The unfortunate part is that for many people, walking in green spaces is likely to be one of the most accessible forms of healing, yet many people are not aware, or they simply do not want to do it, regarding it as a waste of time.
So, does the research back this up and can it help with different types of mental health issues?
What is Green Therapy?
Green therapy, which is also known as ecotherapy, nature therapy, or green care, emphasises the mental and physical health benefits, such as aerobic activity of connecting with nature.
The most common forms of nature therapy include-
- Nature walks and forest bathing.
- Horticultural therapy, such as caring for plants.
- Animal-assisted therapy.
- Green exercise, such as hiking, cycling, or outdoor yoga.
The Urban Scape and Mental Health
In 2025, research by Destatis has predicted that by 2035, the urban population is set to increase to 800 million, setting the global population globally to 5.6 billion. The same study found that in 2025, 58% of people live in cities globally. By 2035, this is predicted to rise to 62%.
Why is this important? Research into urban living and complex mental health issues, specifically psychosis, has been linked by Beyer et al (2024). The reasons are suggested to be complex, with the key factors being population density, lack of natural environment access and lack of social support. The latter is particularly worrying, as in urban populations, there are more people but higher rates of isolation.
It would be simple to assume that people who live in rural areas have better overall mental health. A study by Graves (2024) explored mental health prevalence in rural areas and found that, compared to urban settings, the rates of suicide are higher in rural areas. This could, of course, be due to lack of access to care or late intervention, which is one of the suggested reasons for this rate.
So, looking in the middle- what about the suburbs? Does living in a greener space with better access to mental health services and doctors help to improve mental health? Wei et al (2024) found that areas with less access to high quality spaces have worse mental health indicators, which encompasses a lot of urban areas, as well as some suburban areas. In the same study, it was concluded that people who had access to higher quality green spaces, like parks, woodland and even farms, had lower rates of depression and anxiety.
However, this pattern is not universal and a study by Cortina and Hardin from 2023 argues that when it comes to rating the mental health rates of people in urban areas versus suburban, other factors need to be considered, such as socioeconomic status and that other variables such as the country, the rate of drug dependence and even exploring more severe mental health conditions, such as psychosis and schizophrenia, does not point squarely to access to green spaces being a universal indicator of better mental health.
Dog Walkers and Hikers
When exploring mental health rates between those who live in the city and those who have access to green space, it may be more prudent to focus on the ‘therapy’ aspect, rather than just having the space nearby. This turns out to be a core part of research into the mental health of dog owners (who walk their dogs) and hikers, as this ticks the green exercise box.
Starting with research into the mental health rates of dog walkers (who walk their dogs in green spaces like woods, around farms or in parks), a paper from the UK in 2023 from Hoy, Stangl and Morgan found that having access to shared outdoor spaces to walk dogs, like beaches, parks and woods improved the self-reported well-being of the dog walkers. The same study explored dog walking in urban areas, such as on paths and streets with small green areas and the self-reported mental health rates dipped. Zablan, Melvin, and Hayley (2024) also explored the benefits of green spaces and dog walking on mental health and wellbeing, finding that dog ownership was linked to lower rates of loneliness as well as higher physical activity, which boosted overall mental health rates.
So, what about hiking? Removing the dogs from the equation, do hikers report better mental health than those who cannot hike due to a lack of green space? In living memory, the pandemic of 2020 highlighted that when people were not able to go outside, or to walk in parks, mental health rates worsened but was this due to loneliness, isolation, or just a lack of access to greenery?
Forest time and higher quality green space walks (or exercise) have been reported to have exceptional benefits on mood, anxiety, and wellbeing, especially when compared to urban/built walks. Studies by Ma, Lin, and Williams (2023) as well as work by Lemyre et al (2022) show this across their studies, while also noting that the exercise will play a role in the better self-reported mental health rates.
As always, there is a caveat. People who have the time to hike, the greenspace to hike in and the money to put into hiking equipment often have more disposable income, which can skew the effects seen in these studies. Similarly, dog ownership in 2025 is not cheap and the time to walk a dog each day is also likely linked to a higher income bracket, once again, potentially leading to a biased result.
Urban Gyms- Is It Just The Exercise?
So, if the positive aspect of green therapy is solely about exercise, what about the mental health rates of those who attend gyms in the cities?
Interestingly, these studies suggest that there is more going on during those woodland walks than just exercise and that the presence of green space ticks a box that simply can’t be replicated in an urban gym. A systemic review by Coon et al (2021) found that there were improved psychological and physical health outcomes when exercise was conducted outdoors vs indoors. The areas which were explored included overall mood, energy, tension, confusion, anger and depression symptoms. Wicks, et al (2022) also compared exercise in outdoor, natural environments to exercise in urban spaces and noted that the exposure to the green space lead to larger improvements in fatigue, anxiety and vigour.
So, it seems that getting outdoors, walking around a wooded area (with or without a dog), results in lowered mental health rates. The reasons why are yet to be explored fully but access to greenery, woods and landscapes creates a calm that cannot be replicated and causes those who take part to become truly mindful in that moment.
I hope you found this blog article an interesting read. If you have enjoyed this article, feel free to drop a comment. We appreciate all feedback and want to hear how you find these blogs. If you are worried about your stress rate, or would like some tips on how best to manage your mental health in an urban setting, please contact My Family Psychologist on 07801 079 555 or email luisa@myfamilypsychologist.com
FAQs
What is Green Therapy?
Green therapy (eco therapy, nature therapy, or green care) is the practice of spending time in nature to improve physical and mental health. This can include nature walks, forest bathing, animal assisted therapy and yoga or hiking.
Can Green Therapy Benefit Mental Health?
Research shows that time in natural spaces can reduce anxiety, boost mood, and help with overall well-being, compared to time spent in urban settings.
Why Is Living in Urban Settings Linked to Higher Mental Health Complications?
Studies have suggested that this link may be due to population density, lack of green space and lack of social support. This has been theorised as being the reason for higher rates of complex mental health issues, such as psychosis, in urban areas.
References
Beyer, M., Brick, T., & Kuhn, S. (2024). Urbanicity and psychotic experiences: Social adversities, isolation and exposure to natural environments predict psychosis. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 96, 102293.
Cortina, J., & Hardin, S. (2023). The Geography of Mental Health, Urbanicity, and Affluence. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(8), 5440.
Graves, J. M., Abshire, D. A., Koontz, E., Mackelprang, J. L., & Amiri, S. (2024). Identifying challenges and solutions for improving access to mental health services for rural youth: Insights from adult community members. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 21(6), 725. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph21060725.
Hoy, L. S., Stangl, B., & Morgan, N. (2023). Outdoor leisure with dogs: An empirical evaluation of visiting shared outdoor leisure spaces in the UK. Leisure/Loisir, 47(4), 583–604.
Lemyre, A., et al. (2023). Greenspace use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Science of The Total Environment, 870, 161786. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161786
Ma, J., Lin, P., & Williams, J. M. (2024). Effectiveness of nature-based walking interventions in improving mental health in adults: A systematic review. Current Psychology, 43(11), 9521-9539. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-05112-z
Statistisches Bundesamt (Destatis). (2025). The largest cities worldwide in 2025. https://www.destatis.de/EN/Themes/Countries-Regions/International-Statistics/Data-Topic/Population-Labour-Social-Issues/DemographyMigration/UrbanPopulation.html
Sun, S., Folarin, A. A., Zhang, Y., Cummins, N., Garcia-Dias, R., Stewart, C., Ranjan, Y., Rashid, Z., Conde, P., Laiou, P., Sankesara, H., Matcham, F., Leightley, D., White, K. M., Oetzmann, C., Ivan, A., Lamers, F., Siddi, S., Simblett, S., Nica, R., Rintala, A., Mohr, D. C., Myin-Germeys, I., Wykes, T., Haro, J. M., Penninx, B. W. J. H., Vairavan, S., Narayan, V. A., Annas, P., Hotopf, M., & Dobson, R. J. B. (2023). Challenges in using mHealth data from smartphones and wearable devices to predict depression symptom severity: Retrospective analysis. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 25, e45233. https://doi.org/10.2196/45233
Thompson Coon, J., Boddy, K., Stein, K., Whear, R., Barton, J., & Depledge, M. H. (2021). Does participating in physical activity in outdoor natural environments have a greater effect on physical and mental well-being than physical activity indoors? A systematic review. Environmental Science & Technology, 45(5), 1761–1772. https://doi.org/10.1021/es102947t
Wei, Y., Zhang, X., Chen, J., Li, L., & Liu, Q. (2024). Built Environment, Natural Environment, and Mental Health, Geo Health, Jun 22;8(6):e2024GH001047. doi: 10.1029/2024GH001047.
Wicks, C., et al. (2022). Psychological benefits of outdoor physical activity in natural versus urban environments: A systematic review and meta-analysis of experimental studies. Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being, 14(4), 495–520. https://doi.org/10.1111/aphw.12353
Zablan, K., Melvin, G., & Hayley, A. (2024). Dog ownership, physical activity, loneliness and mental health: A comparison of older adult and younger adult companion animal owners. BMC Psychology, 12, 618. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-024-02104-x**