Changes: An unexpected change can be like a breath of
fresh air ~
a little brisk at
first...but magic for body and soul!
(from a novel by
Susan Biggs)
“Get outside each
day...and you'll feel less stressed,”
say Drs. Oz and
Roizen in an August 16th issue of the Spectator.
The following are
excerpts from a Health article written by
Michael Roizen, M.D.
and Mehmet Oz, M.D.
Getting up close and personal
with Mother Nature yields big mind-body benefits. A walk in the park is a great
lunchtime activity, but new reports reveal that even desk jockeys and folks
with little time (or no great love for the great outdoors) can reap the rewards
of a green environment with only a few plants around their workplace and in
their home. You need a little green-time every...or almost every day to reap
its amazing benefits for your brain and body.
Stronger Immunity: In a Japanese study, levels of protective
natural killer cells that battle viruses and some forms of cancer rose 40% when
business men and women spent time walking in the woods. But you can get a similar immune boost
from...sniffing forest scents...indoors.
A Break from Worry: Getting outside when you're feeling
stressed improves mood and boosts short-term memory. And if you're depressed, getting out and
about makes it five times more likely you'll feel better than if you stayed
indoors. Combine natural scenery with
exercise and you're really going to amp
up your mood boosters.
More Energy: Office workers feel more energetic with a
green plant or two nearby and they become more productive. Your smart move ~ place some greenery where
you can see it when you look up from your computer.
Higher Creativity: Brain scans suggest immersing yourself in
a natural scene, whether 3-D or
in a picture, turns up brain activity in areas that govern pleasure and
emotion. You'll feel more relaxed...and
balanced...and improve your creativity
by as much as 50%.
Ready to go
green? Here's how:
Got a minute? Stand under
a tree...or park yourself next to one.
Even better, walk around a bush or beside a blooming garden.
The more greenery you're exposed to...the better brain benefits.
Don't feel like exercising
outdoors? Go anyway! Compared with slogging on that treadmill in
the basement, doing the same stroll or jog
under blue skies and leafy
green tree boughs can add a 12% mood boost to your exercise. And don't let rain stop you. Even getting outside in bad weather boosts
mood more than an indoor workout.
Stuck at your desk? Call up images of nature on your
computer. Simply looking at pictures of
the outdoors can make you feel friendlier.
While you're at it, listening to soothing water and tweeting
birds helps you rebound from a stressful experience 33% faster. Check out archive.org's free “Sounds of
Nature Collection.”
Take time to smell the pine
trees: Japanese scientists say sniffing
scents (like pine and cypress) is one reason why nature walks strengthen
immunity ~ a new reason to enjoy these smells.
Create an indoor nature
retreat: Although we are big fans of
the benefits of of outdoor physical activity, you can reap green benefits
if you get on a treadmill with a view out the gym window! And position your home exercise equipment and
a comfy chair so you have a view of outside greenery! There's plenty of evidence that
simply...seeing greenery...reduces stress, increases mental focus and
fuels good moods.
But don't stop there!
Invite house plants into your home.
Live plants can keep
your home humidified...
remove carbon dioxide
from the air...and send out revitalizing oxygen.
Most do this by
day...as they convert sunlight into energy.
Street Tree Project
People in some of Hamilton’s most
polluted neighbourhoods are breathing a little easier, thanks to the work by
Randy Kay and the group at the Hamilton Street Tree Project. Recently, he was
named Volunteer Hamilton’s Community Builder of the Year. He said his work wasn’t about winning awards,
or even how many trees are planted every year, but about the long-term impact
on neighbourhoods with worst air quality.
More than 80 trees were planted in Crown
Point last
year. The year before, about 70 trees
were planted in the Keith area. “The
impact on these areas in 20 years will be tremendous.”
Randy Kay, an environmental and
clean air advocate in the city for years, dreamed up the Street Tree Project
three years ago while looking at Google satellite maps of Hamilton What he saw, struck a chord. You could see the difference when looking at Ancaster or Dundas…you could see GREEN ~ but other
neighbourhoods were all grey.
Kay, who is co-ordinator of volunteers
for the Ontario Public Interest Research Group at McMaster University,
decided to connect the university’s student volunteers with the city’s existing
tree planting program. Students went door to door promoting the tree
planting and the group hit immediate success.
Kay said the group will be back again this summer, canvassing an even wider
section of the north end and hoping to
top the 80 trees planted last year.
Strength in Numbers
Volunteers fill buckets with
cedar mulch to be used as bedding around newly-planted trees at Churchill Park,
Saturday morning as part of Earth Day
celebrations. About 400 volunteers
helped plant more than 1,000 saplings…of 26 native species to replace the dying Norwegian Maples and European Buckthorn which were cut
out of the area earlier this week.
(Photo in Spectator depicts 5 or 6 of these volunteers with shovels amid
existing healthy trees…as they plant these saplings for new growth in the
neighbourhood.)
Volunteers make a
difference..
Volunteers make any
city a better place.
Hamilton has one of
the highest percentages of volunteers in Canada.
Pearl of Wisdom
May you always
walk in the sunshine, My Friend.
May you always
have Love to share...
Health to
spare...and Friends that care.
(Native adage)
Crafted by Merle
Baird-Kerr…April 20, 2015
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