With widening research, doctors have even more reasons to tell patients to spend time in open spaces for better mental health. Now, a statewide study suggests even small differences in nearness to urban green spaces and access to waterfronts have ties to improved self-reported mental health among people 65 and older. Such proximity to open spaces appears to help seniors battle depression or mental distress, which are risk factors in cognitive decline and dementia, said researcher Adithya Vegaraju, a medical student in the Washington State University Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine.
He spent two years in Spokane and is now in the Seattle area for his fourth year of studies. Vegaraju suggested this research with mentor Solmaz Amiri, a WSU faculty member in Seattle and expert in geographic information systems. Older people can be more vulnerable to mental health issues while less likely to receive treatment for those problems, Vegaraju said. “Older adults with depression, anxiety or mental health issues are known to be more resistant to medical interventions or talk therapy, which are the go-to treatments for these conditions,” Vegaraju said. He said one solution might be to have health providers write nature prescriptions – a growing trend especially in Europe – to recommend that patients spend time regularly outdoors. If exposure to green spaces or bodies of water could help prevent or treat poor mental health in older adults, he said it’s a topic that deserves a closer look.
Within residential ZIP code areas, the study measured the closest green spaces – parks, forested areas, city tree canopies and trails – along with what researchers called “blue spaces” that range from rivers to lakes and coastlines. Published in the journal Health & Place, the research is based on Behavior or Risk Factors Surveillance System health survey data from more than 42,000 people 65 and older who lived in urban areas of Washington between 2011 and 2019, including in Spokane.
