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5 Health Benefits of Our Green Spaces

Austin Tang — Fri, 20 Mar 2020 12:05:16 +0000

As you get outside this spring, have you ever considered how our green spaces contribute to our health? Studies show that green space and landscaping contribute to health, happiness, and intellect.

It’s natural to long for spring when it’s cold outside. But did you know, there’s a good reason why you may pine for green? Living landscapes are an important part of the outdoor lifestyle that Americans enjoy, but the benefits go beyond the barbeque and backyard baseball. Green spaces are necessary for your health.

“The advantages of grass and landscaping surpass the usual physical benefits that result from outdoor activity,” said Kris Kiser, president and CEO, Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI). “Numerous studies have found that people who spend more time outside or are exposed to living landscapes are happier, healthier and smarter. As you get ready to get outside this spring with your lawn mower and other outdoor power equipment, it’s great to know being outside is good for you.”

Researchers have studied the impact of nature on human well-being for years, but recent studies have found a more direct correlation between human health, particularly related to stress, and the importance of people’s access to nature and managed landscapes.

Getting dirty is actually good for you. Soil is the new Prozac, according to Dr. Christopher Lowry, a neuroscientist at the University of Bristol in England. Mycobacterium vaccae in soil mirrors the effect on neurons that Prozac provides. The bacterium stimulates serotonin production, which explains why people who spend time gardening, doing yard work, and have direct contact with soil feel more relaxed and happier.

Children who are raised on farms in a “dirtier” environment than an urban setting not only have a stronger immune system but are also better able to manage social stress, according to the National Academy of Sciences.

Living near living landscapes can improve your mental health. Researchers in England found that people moving to greener areas experienced an immediate improvement in mental health that was sustained for at least three years after they moved. The study also showed that people relocating to a more developed area suffered a drop in mental health.

Greening of vacant urban areas in Philadelphia reduced feelings of depression by 41.5% and reduced poor mental health by 62.8% for those living near the vacant lots, according to a study by a research team.

Green spaces can make you healthier too. People who live within a half mile of green space (such parks, public gardens, and greenways) were found to have a lower incidence of fifteen diseases by Dutch researchers — including depression, anxiety, heart disease, diabetes, asthma and migraines.

A 2015 study found that people living on streets with more trees had a boost in heart and metabolic health. Studies show that tasks conducted under the calming influence of nature are performed better and with greater accuracy, yielding a higher quality result. Spending time in gardens, for instance, can improve memory performance and attention span by 20%.

Living landscapes make you smarter. Children gain attention and working memory benefits when they are exposed to greenery, says a study led by Payam Dadvand of the Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology in Barcelona, In addition, exposure to natural settings may be widely effective in reducing attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms in children.

This applies to adults as well. Research has also shown that being around plants helps you concentrate better at home and at work. Charlie Hall, Ellison Chair in International Floriculture believes that spending time in gardens can improve attention span and memory performance by as much as 20 percent.

A National Institute of Health study found that adults demonstrate significant cognitive gains after going on a nature walk. In addition, a Stanford University study found that walking in nature, rather than a concrete-oriented, urban environment, resulted in decreased anxiety, rumination, and negative affect, and produced cognitive benefits, such as increased working memory performance.

Living landscapes help you heal faster. Multiple studies have discovered that plants in hospital recovery rooms or views of aesthetically-pleasing gardens help patients heal up to one day faster than those who are in more sterile or austere environments.

Physicians are now prescribing time outdoors for some patients, according to recent reports. Park Rx America is a non-profit with a mission to encourage physicians to prescribe doses of nature.

All of these benefits reinforce the importance of maintaining our yards, parks and other community green spaces. Trees, shrubs, grass, and flowering plants are integral to human health. Not only do they provide a place for kids and pets to play, they directly contribute to our mental and physical well-being.

More information can be found by visiting www.turfmutt.com

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Of All Our Senses, Smell has the Most Direct Impact On Our Feelings

admin — Thu, 25 Aug 2016 18:51:20 +0000

http://goodnewsplanet.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/rachel_herz_1.mp3

Influencing Our Day – Todays Behavior and the Way We Interact with Others.
As Autumn is a Time of Transformation we’re here with Rachel Herz, PH.D. And World Renowned Expert on the Psychology of Smell and Emotion. She is here to discuss the Importance of Fragrance and Emotion and Learn More about How Fragrance can Help Encourage Us to Step Out of Our Comfort Zone this Season.

Rachel Herz, PhD & Author Bio
Rachel Herz, Ph.D. is a neuroscientist and leading world expert on the psychological science of smell. She has been conducting research on the sense of smell, emotion, perception, motivated behavior and cognition since 1990. Dr. Herz has published over 75 original research papers, received numerous awards and grants, co-authored several college textbooks, and is an adjunct professor at Brown University and Boston College. She is also a professional consultant to various industries regarding smell, taste, food and flavor, and is frequently called upon as an expert witness in legal cases involving olfaction. Dr. Herz is the author of two popular science books, The Scent of Desire: Discovering Our Enigmatic Sense of Smell, which was selected as a finalist for the “2009 AAAS Prize for Excellence in Science Books,” and That’s Disgusting: Unraveling the Mysteries of Repulsion, which analyzes the emotion of disgust from culture to neuroscience, and has received numerous accolades from both popular and scholarly presses. Currently in the process of publication, Rachel Herz has a new book that explores how our senses and psychology govern our perception of food, and the experience and consequences of eating.
For more information see: www.rachelherz.com

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Amen’s Unleash Power of Latest Books at Home of Serial Entrepreneur…

admin — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:06:44 +0000

Best Selling Author and Neuroscientist, Daniel Amen, MD and Nutrition Expert, Tana Amen launch their latest books at the home of Kevin McGovern

Amen’s Unleash Power of Latest Books

at Home of Serial Entrepreneur

New York, N.Y. Daniel Amen, MD and his wife Tana Amen presented their new books, “Unleash the Power of the Female Brain” and “The Omni Diet” at the home of business leader and philanthropist, Kevin McGovern who founded several world category leaders including Sobe Beverages, Brita, Pur, Alpha Hydroxy Acids, among others. Elite members from the Medical, Entrepreneurial and Artistic world’s assembled including Sara Herbert Galloway, Judy Kuriansky, PhD, Robert Cancro, MD, Sandlin Lowe, MD, Jim Luce, Barbara Meister Bender, David Bender, among others.

Kevin McGovern stated that he believes in promoting a more healthy life and hopes to contribute to the betterment of society through his Water Initiative. Kevin believes in the importance of healthy, clean water and Dr. Amen believes in the importance of a healthy, balanced brain so their missions are not dissimilar.

Daniel Amen, MD, is one of the world’s leading experts on the how the brain works and the bestselling author of over thirty books on the brain and brain health. Now, for the first time, Dr .Amen devotes an entire book to the female brain, offering insight on the unique characteristics and need of a woman’s brain in UNLEASH THE POWER OF THE FEMALE BRAIN (February 12, 2013, Harmony Books)., a practical prescriptive program targeted specifically for women to help them thrive.

Based on research from his clinical practice, Dr. Amen’s breakthrough guide addresses the issues women ask about the most including fertility, pregnancy, menopause, weight, stress, anxiety, insomnia, and relationships. UNLEASH THE POWER OF THE FEMALE BRAIN is a step-by-step program for women that will help them achieve greater health, energy, and lasting happiness by harnessing the power of their very unique brains.

Dr. Amen said he wrote the book to honor the women in his life and help them harness their unique strengths and overcome some of their vulnerabilities. He has 5 sisters, 3 daughters, 2 granddaughters, and 14 nieces.

According to Dr. Amen, women make great leaders, “Women like Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Mother Teresa, and Margaret Thatcher demonstrate what we learned in this study , and that the female brain has strengths n the areas of empathy, intuition, collaboration, self-control, and appropriate worry — all traits of outstanding leaders.”

http://www.amenclinics.com/dr-amen/media/item/dr-amen-on-the-dr-oz-show-part-1

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By the time Daniel Amen’s better half reached her mid-30’s, she had experienced a lifetime of chronic medical ailments, including severe digestive issues, recurrent infections and most devastatingly, a battle with thyroid cancer in her early 20’s. Tana Amen B.S.N, R.N was bluntly told by a doctor that she had been dealt a bad genetic hand and needed to simply resign herself to a lifetime of fragile health and prescription medications. Tana replied, “no way.”

THE OMNI DIET: the revolutionary 70% and 30% protein program to lose weight, reverse disease, fight in- one that could provide true health through an abundance of food and flavor, not deprivation. Tana asks her readers to do for them what she managed to do for herself. “Give me two weeks, and I will change your life.” Based on her study information, and change your life forever is the culmination of a decade long quest by Tana Amen to restore her own health, and to identify the diet to end all diets- one that could provide true health through an abundance of food and flavor, not deprivation.

As a sought-after nutrition expert, former neurosurgical ICU nurse and wife of renowned “brain doctor” Daniel G. Amen, M.D., Tana turned her unhealthy life around. After (like many of us) being raised on a diet dominated by processed foods and fatty snacks, trying countless diets to win back her health and optimum weight, she discovered the powerful connection between food and wellness which she spells out in this genuinely life-changing book.

The OMNI DIET is not only based in groundbreaking genetic research, but also on Tana’s work guiding herself as well as thousands of people who lost a total of 250,000 pounds following the amazing “Daniel Plan. Simply put, THE OMNI DIT unlocks the healing power of food, and provides a revolutionary, easy-to-follow program that will change our lives forever.

Mark Hyman, MD, # 1 New York Times bestselling authors, states “The OMNI DIET cuts through the confusion about what to eat and gives America a roadmap to good food and health all at once. It may seem too good to be true, but following this approach will not only enhance and extend your life – it will reverse many chronic diseases.”

http://tanaamen.com/blog/item/tana-talks-about-the-omni-diet-on-the-today-show

The latest Amen Clinic launched in New York last Fall in midtown Manhattan. Located at 16 East 40th Street, literally a stone’s throw away from the august New York Public Library, the clinic occupies the entire ninth floor. The clinic offers innovative methods for evaluating and treating patients for a wide variety of behavioral, learning and emotional problems for children, teens and adults.

“I belong to the only group of doctors that never looks at the organ they treat,” stated Dr. Amen. He is, of course, referring to psychiatrists, and the organ is, of course, the brain. Different from fMRIs which provide pictures of the brain, SPECT (Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography) imaging looks at how the brain functions. Imaging the brain’s blood flow levels helps identify areas of your brain that work well, areas of your brain that work too hard, and areas of the brain that do not work hard enough. SPECT gives us a picture of a living brain so we can better target treatment. SPECT changes the diagnosis or treatment plan in 79% of the cases.

The Amen Clinics utilizes high resolution brain SPECT imaging, a widely accepted nuclear medicine procedure, which provides objective measures which when combined with a thorough clinical assessment improve the diagnoses and target treatment. Amen Clinics has developed a highly effective method for applying this technology in clinical practice. More and more psychiatrists are finding the Amen Solution is not to be ignored.

Manuel Trujillo, MD, Chief Psychiatrist, “Much research has accumulated over the last decades about neuroimaging findings in psychiatric disorders. What is needed now is to build bridges to bring such discoveries to the bedside. Dr. Daniel Amen deserves great credit for a solitary ( and much criticized ) exploration of the gap between research and clinical practice. Based on his unsurpassed experience ( he has built database of more than 70 thousand SPECT brain scans ) and his clinical wisdom, Dr. Amen has developed road-maps to bridge those gaps. I have no question that in a few years brain scanning will be routine in psychiatric practice and Dr. Amen deserves a lot of credit for leading the way.”

Sandlin Lowe, MD, one of the lead psychiatrists who evaluates patients at the New York Amen Clinic, stated, “Finally, the paradigm shift that psychiatry, has been looking for and so desperately needs, has come to New York.”

Ralph DePalo, PhD, Scientific Advisor to the Global Stress Initiative states, “The Amen Clinic’s approach to diagnosis and treatment and its use of brain imaging helps decrease the stigma of psychiatric illness as patients can now see the effects of their illness on their brain. Patients see and understand that their condition is a medical not moral condition. This helps promote adherence to treatment.”

Over the course of 21 years, the six Amen Clinics, across the United States, have utilized and evaluated over 73,000 brain SPECT scans of patients from over 90 countries, compiling the world’s largest database of brain scans for behavioral problems. In a recent six-month outcome study, with 500 Amen Clinics’ patients of varying ages and locations, 75% showed significant improvement in their condition and 85% reported improved quality of life after implementing their personalized Amen Clinic’s protocols. This wealth of knowledge and experience has gained Amen Clinics an unparalleled international reputation.

Judy Kuriansky, PhD, a Clinical Psychologist affiliated at Columbia University Teacher’s College and the main representative of the International Association of Applied Psychology for the United Nation states: “What the Amen Clinics is doing is brilliant. It can help a lot of people and already has. The method, professionalism, and comprehensive treatment approach offers healing opportunities to diverse hurting populations.”

For more information go to:

www.amenclinics.com

www.tanaamen.com

Photos Taken by Annie Watt

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