Oct 14, 2022 – Spending time in “blue spaces” – such as beaches, rivers, and lakes – can have significant and lasting benefits for well-being throughout life, according to the New study Posted in Journal of Environmental Psychology.
When exposed to blue spaces in childhood, people are more likely to revisit bodies of water in adulthood and to appreciate the time they spend in natural environments.
“Learning to swim and estimating risks in terms of rip currents, cold temperatures, etc., is of course key,” said Matthew White, one of the study authors and chief scientist at the University of Vienna, Tell Watchman.
“But the message we are trying to get across is that only teaching children about the dangers of water settings can leave them too fearful and ill-equipped to take advantage of places that can be most beneficial to their health and well-being,” he said. “The vast majority of visits to Blue Space – for both adults and children – do not involve on wetness, so there are also many advantages from spending time near the water, not just in it.”
Researchers from the United States and dozens of other countries analyzed BlueHealth International Survey data on more than 15,000 people in 18 countries, examining links between children’s exposure to blue spaces and adult well-being.
Participants recalled their experiences up to the age of 16, noting how often they visited the blue spaces, how local they were, and how comfortable their parents or guardians were about letting them swim and play. They also discussed their recent contact with blues and greens over the past four weeks, as well as their mental health status over the past two weeks.
The researchers found that more exposure of children to blue spaces was associated with better well-being of adults. They noted that the results were consistent across all countries and regions.
Adults also had familiarity and confidence around coasts, rivers, and lakes, as well as higher levels of joy around bodies of water and a greater tendency to spend leisure time in nature during adulthood. In turn, this raised their mood and well-being.
“We recognize that both green and blue spaces have a positive impact on people’s mental and physical health,” said Valeria Vitali, one of the study’s authors and a doctoral candidate at Sapienza University in Rome. Watchman.
In recent years, an increasing number of studies have pointed to the benefits of spending time in nature, including blue spaces and green spaces such as forests, parks, and gardens. Natural settings can increase people’s physical activity levels, enhance mood and well-being, and reduce stress and anxiety.
Vitale and colleagues note that blue spaces, in particular, have unique sensory qualities such as the sounds of waves and light reflections that can improve mood, as well as recreational activities such as swimming, fishing and water sports.
“We believe our findings are of particular relevance to practitioners and policy makers due to the representative nature of the samples at the national level,” she said. First, our findings reinforce the need to protect and invest in natural spaces in order to improve potential benefits for subjective well-being. Second, our research suggests that policies and initiatives that encourage increased contact with blue spaces during childhood may support better mental health in later life.”
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