The findings of a new study suggest that if you are regularly going out for fresh air, then you’re doing something good for both your brain and well-being.
The study was led by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and the Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE). The longitudinal study recently appeared in The World Journal of Biological Psychiatry.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, walks became a popular and regular pastime.
A neuroscientific study suggested that this habit has a good effect not only on our general well-being but also on our brain structure.
It showed that the human brain benefits from even short stays outdoors. Until now, it was assumed that environments affect us only over longer periods of time.
The researchers regularly examined six healthy, middle-aged city dwellers for six months. In total, more than 280 scans were taken of their brains using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
The focus of the study was on self-reported behaviour during the last 24 hours and in particular on the hours that participants spent outdoors prior to imaging.
In addition, they were asked about their fluid intake, consumption of caffeinated beverages, the amount of time spent outside, and physical activity, in order to see if these factors altered the association between time spent outside and the brain.
In order to be able to include seasonal differences, the duration of sunshine in the study period was also taken into account.
Brain scans show that the time spent outdoors by the participants was positively related to gray matter in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, which is the superior (dorsal) and lateral part of the frontal lobe in the cerebral cortex.
This part of the cortex is involved in the planning and regulation of actions as well as what is referred to as cognitive control. In addition, many psychiatric disorders are known to be associated with a reduction in gray matter in the prefrontal area of the brain.
The results persisted even when the other factors that could also explain the relationship between time spent outdoors and brain structure were kept constant.
The researchers performed statistical calculations in order to examine the influence of sunshine duration, the number of hours of free time, physical activity, and fluid intake on the results. (ANI)
