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Trees, Forests, and Our Health

Robert Ouellette
It was the Japanese who first expressed in 21st-century language the essential relationship between trees, forests, and human wellbeing.
Where forest bathing started

It was the Japanese who first expressed in 21st-century language the essential relationship between trees, forests, and human wellbeing.

Director of the Japanese Forest Agency, Tomohide Akiyama, used the term "shinrin yoku" or "forest bathing" to describe how people can improve their health by visiting forests. Initially, it was a branding slogan for the Japanese ecotourism sector, but forest bathing has since evolved into a generic term for approaches to healthier living that are in harmony with natural systems.

Like many popularized health movements, forest bathing has some crystal-waving advocates who are more enthusiastic than they are scientific. But there is hard science at the core of the movement. Dr. Qing Li, an Associate Professor at Tokyo's Nippon Medical School, is the researcher behind the popular 2018 book, Forest Bathing, published by Viking Press.

Dr. Qing Li's book details how humans evolved in forests. We have an intrinsic, inseverable relationship with them in spite of the general truth that most people are unaware of the link. The act of forest bathing is a way to re-establish that relationship. What do we gain? We get emotional and physical benefits by re-engaging with forests. The benefits are so profound that they sound hyperbolic, but they are not. Forest bathing lowers blood pressure, reduces stress, improves sleep, lifts depression, boost the immune system, offers anti-cancer protection, and helps us lose weight . . .

How?

Forests are chemical factories

The health effects of those chemicals explain why the act of forest bathing is becoming so popular. But visiting forests for their rejuvenating effects isn't just a 21st century phenomenon. The ethos of the United States was shaped by its early connection with forests. Think of America's great 19th/20th century parks movement; the Sierra Club; Ansel Adams; Teddy Roosevelt; and many, many more American examples of a deep appreciation of the great outdoors.

Dr. Qing Li links the presence of phytoncides in forests to the benefits we gain from them. Phytoncides are the natural oils in plants that protect them from bacteria, insects, and fungi. Terpines are their main components. The major terpines are recognizable to most of us because of their smell. D-Limonene is, as you'd expect, lemony smelling. Alpha-Pinene smells like pine (Pinesol is known to many of us as a cleaning and disinfecting agent). Beta-Pinene smells like basil or dill. And Camphene smells like turpentine.

Mushrooms can be magic

It is not surprising then that it is an American researcher, Paul Stamets, who is exploring how forest by-products like mycelia and mushrooms offer an almost infinite array of solutions to some of humankind's greatest problems, Covid-19 among them. Just one example is Stamets' investigations into the use of psilocybin as a way to reduce the endemic cases of depression affecting Western culture. His research is inspired by the evolutionary connection between forests and humans. Take the time to view the documentary, Fantastic Fungi, to learn more about Stamets' paradigm-shifting work.

Mushrooms in a British Columbia rain forest.

Nature's importance to our well-being is re-surfacing in our collective consciousness. It reminds us that we are at a tipping point in western science: knowledge and technology offer paths to the future that can be either creative or destructive. Maybe it will be the often overlooked but essential trees and forests that will inspire us to make smarter choices for the future.

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