If You Live Near A Park, You're More Likely To Be Happy

If you want to be happy, living near a park could be a good idea. More and more research shows a relationship between green space and higher levels of mental health.

The latest comes from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Researchers looked at 2009 survey data that asked 2,500 residents about depression, anxiety, and stress. They next analyzed 229 neighborhoods for vegetation cover. Those places with more trees tended to be happier, and the association was “significant and sizable,” according to a paper discussing the results.

Those places with more trees tended to be happier, and the association was “significant and sizable.”
In fact, the relationship of happiness to trees was similar to well-known correlations, like unemployment. “The most interesting thing is that decreased symptoms attributed to green space were similar to decreases observed for other important determinants of mental health, including insurance status and income,” wrote Kirsten Beyer, an assistant professor at the Medical College of Wisconsin, in an email.

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[Image: NYC, Central Park via Pio3 / Shutterstock]