Nature for all senses

Hello all!

Wow. It’s been a half a year since my last post! But it's no surprise - the rest of my last semester at Berkeley was very hectic and I worked hard to finish strong, which meant that I had no time for anything extra. It paid off, since I graduated in May with a Bachelor’s Degree in Nutritional Sciences, Dietetics. Up next is my dietetic internship at UCSF Medical Center, which I just started a few days ago. It’s going to be a crazy, but a rewarding year.

View from the lake shore toward the lake

Before starting the internship, I had a chance to enjoy a break in my first home, Finland. Even though nutrition is my main emphasis when it comes to promoting well-being, I noticed very tangibly this time how much being in nature can induce happiness. The first thing that I noticed when I arrived in Finland this year, were the amazing smells. Forest and wild flowers are everywhere and they produce such amazing aromas! Additionally, multiple times I woke up to the singing of birds, which is one of the best ways to wake up in the morning in my opinion. The hum of traffic is also almost nonexistent there, which is very nice since it is almost impossible to escape it in the heart of Silicon Valley.

Nature can offer stimulation not only for hearing and smell, but also for sight and touch. For example, one day I decided to take a walk to a nearby lake shore. The lake shore offered breathtaking views of the lake, and sitting on the solid rock, which is very common on most shores here, warmed up by the sun’s rays, felt amazing, too. At that moment nature engaged all of my senses, as the needle trees also smelled wonderful, and the birds singing and waves rippling against the rock provided a lovely soundtrack. It was easy to feel happy and at ease!

Bedrock and needle trees at the lake shore

Even though I do really enjoy living in the San Francisco Bay Area, I sometimes miss the closeness of nature that is available in Finland. Of course, nature is not too far away here either, since one can drive to the mountains and enjoy a hike there as well, but it is not quite the same as having to walk only 30 seconds from your front door to be in the forest. In Finland, Everyman’s Rights guarantee that anyone can walk almost anywhere in nature, as long as he or she doesn’t cause harm to it, or go too close to buildings. In California, one always has to stay on the path and roaming freely is not possible. Still, at the end, it comes down to what a person is used to – I am used to having the forest right there all the time, whereas having a city park nearby is all that some may need.

My first Biology teacher at my community college told the class once that nature is good for one’s health, seen in the drop in their blood pressure. I also – through personal experience – think that being in nature can promote one’s well-being instantly. Similarly, in a study conducted in Stanford, the researchers found that spending time in nature decreases the risk of depression (1). I’d like to see even more scientific research studies done on the subject, as we can both improve people’s health, and increase the general desire to protect nature, when we tangibly understand what healthy nature can offer us (2).

Even though I can’t just walk into the forest from my front door in California, I can still find beautiful nature close-by. I just need to expend a little more energy to get there, which, once I get there, really doesn’t even feel like effort at all! The nature in California is different, but equally good. I encourage everyone to go for a hike at the next chance and invite me to go along!

Tilden Regional Park

  Thanks for reading,

  Anna-Kaisa

References

1)     http://news.stanford.edu/2015/06/30/hiking-mental-health-063015/

2)     https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-moment-youth/201403/does-nature-make-us-happy