was not involved in the new study. “But it doesn’t have to be expensive, and it doesn’t have to be hours in one shot.”
In fact, she added, most studies on the relationship between outdoor time and human well-being have focused on “nearby nature.”
For the current study, White’s team used data from more than 19,800 adults who took part in a U.K. government survey. Among other things, participants were asked to rate their general health and satisfaction with their lives (a measure of well-being).
They were also asked how often they’d spent time outdoors in the past week — be it the countryside, the woods, a beach or green spaces within a city.
Overall, a difference emerged at the two-hour “threshold.” For example, among people who’d spent two to three hours in nature, 82% said their general health was
