A nature-deficit childhood

Nature nurtures

Time spent in nature has many benefits for our physical and mental wellbeing. You may have noticed that after a walk in nature around your local park, you feel calmer and in a brighter mood. More than simply just a change of scene, the outdoors offers a multi-sensory experience. On a short walk in nature, you can feel the sensation of wind blowing against your skin, the sound of birdsong, the smell of wildflowers and a range of textures to touch and interact with such as the rough bark on a tree trunk. 

Time outdoors reduces stress levels

A research study found that people’s stress levels were reduced by spending just 20-30 minutes outdoors in nature. Saliva samples were taken to measure levels of the primary stress hormone, cortisol (Hunter, Gillespie and Chen, 2019).

Mindfulness outdoors

Self-regulation is a term often talked about in early years. The outdoors offers a wonderful opportunity to pause, reflect and introduce calming techniques such as breathwork. The Japanese wellbeing practice of Forest Bathing ‘Shinrin Yoku’, focuses on slowing down, being calm, relaxed and connected with nature amongst trees.  

Time outdoors can boost our immune system

There is promising research which suggests that spending time in nature boosts our immune system. The natural world is a rich biome of micro-organisms. Spending time outdoors in nature exposes us to animals, plants and fungi which can help to build our immune system (Andersen L, Corazon SSS, Stigsdotter UKK, 2021).

Less screen-time, more green-time

Time spent outdoors in nature offers us a great opportunity to have a break from devices. Social Psychologist Professor Jonathan Haidt in his book ‘The Anxious Generation’ (Haidt, 2024) highlights the correlation between the introduction of smart phones and the negative impact on mental health in children and young people.  As adults, he challenges us to reflect on our screentime use too. He states, “What you do often matters far more than what you say, so watch your own phone habits. Be a good role model who is not giving continuous partial attention to both the phone and the child.” (Haidt, 2024, P. 269).

Healthy physical development

The Chief Medical Officer in the UK in a report recommends that children under five should spend 3 hours a day engaged in physical activities (UK Chief Medical Officer, 2019. Being active is part of a healthy lifestyle and the outdoors offers our children space to move in a range of ways that being indoors does not, such as running, swinging and climbing.

Barefoot benefits

Taking off our shoes and spending time barefoot on grass, soil and uneven ground is highly beneficial. Angelica J. Hanscom, who is a paediatric occupational therapist, in her book ‘Balanced and Barefoot’, (Hanscom, 2016) states; “Going barefoot out in nature helps to develop normal gait patterns, balance and tolerance of touch in the feet, all which provide a strong foundation for confident and fluid movement.” (Hanscom, 2016, P.107).

Healthy eye development

Spending time outdoors in natural light, offers retinal dopamine which supports healthy eye development. The World Health Organisation in its publication ‘World Report on Vision’ (World Health Organisation, 2019) estimates that 2.6 billion people globally have myopia (short-sightedness), with a significant rise in young people with the condition. The report recommends preventative lifestyle changes among children, which includes increased time spent outdoors.

Trees improve air quality

The i-Tree Eco Project (2015) reported that, “Trees make a significant contribution to improving air quality by reducing air temperature (thereby lowering ozone levels), directly removing pollutants from the air, absorbing them through the leaf surfaces and by intercepting…smoke, pollen, ash and dusts.” (i-Tree Eco Project, 2015, P.33).

 Conservation of the natural world

Children today are the future custodians of our planet and spending time outdoors offers first-hand experiences to observe and connect with the natural world.  Explore under logs to look for minibeasts and get to know the diversity of plants, trees and animals in your environment. Walk through the park together and notice the subtle changes in nature throughout the seasons.  

A study carried out by researchers, found that children were able to identify far more Pokémon ‘species’ shown on a set of cards than real-world common wildlife (Balmford et al., 2002). This draws to our attention the gap in children’s knowledge and understanding of the natural world. Many children can remember the names of dinosaurs, so let’s introduce them to the names of birds, insects, plants and trees in our local green spaces.

Sir David Attenborough, in the film, ‘Conserving Wonder’ (2015) raises an important question, “If children don’t grow up knowing about nature and appreciating it, they will not understand it, and if they don’t understand it, they won’t protect it…and if they don’t protect it, who will?” (Sefton, N.D.).