levels of the “stress” hormone cortisol. They also tended to sleep more at night, and had reduced rates of type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
Wolf said it’s not yet clear exactly how contact with nature benefits us — that is, what does it do to the brain and nervous system? But scientists don’t always know precisely how a medication works either, she noted.
Wolf thinks the evidence is compelling enough that community planners should be taking green space seriously.
“Parks are not just a frill,” she said.
And those plans should include equitable distribution, Wolf added, so that
