- 著者
- Bum-Jin Park Yuko Tsunetsugu Tamami Kasetani Hideki Hirano Takahide Kagawa Masahiko Sato Yoshifumi Miyazaki
- 出版者
- Japan Society of Physiological Anthropology
- 雑誌
- Journal of PHYSIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY (ISSN:18806791)
- 巻号頁・発行日
- vol.26, no.2, pp.123-128, 2007 (Released:2007-04-15)
- 参考文献数
- 12
- 被引用文献数
- 79 287
The purpose of this study is to examine the physiological effects of Shinrin-yoku (taking in the atmosphere of the forest). The subjects were 12 male students (22.8±1.4 yr). On the first day of the experiments, one group of 6 subjects was sent to a forest area, and the other group of 6 subjects was sent to a city area. On the second day, each group was sent to the opposite area for a cross check. In the forenoon, the subjects were asked to walk around their given area for 20 minutes. In the afternoon, they were asked to sit on chairs and watch the landscapes of their given area for 20 minutes. Cerebral activity in the prefrontal area and salivary cortisol were measured as physiological indices in the morning at the place of accommodation, before and after walking in the forest or city areas during the forenoon, and before and after watching the landscapes in the afternoon in the forest and city areas, and in the evening at the place of accommodation. The results indicated that cerebral activity in the prefrontal area of the forest area group was significantly lower than that of the group in the city area after walking; the concentration of salivary cortisol in the forest area group was significantly lower than that of the group in the city area before and after watching each landscape. The results of the physiological measurements show that Shinrin-yoku can effectively relax both people's body and spirit.
- 著者
- Yuko Tsunetsugu Bum-Jin Park Hideki Ishii Hideki Hirano Takahide Kagawa Yoshifumi Miyazaki
- 出版者
- Japan Society of Physiological Anthropology
- 雑誌
- Journal of PHYSIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY (ISSN:18806791)
- 巻号頁・発行日
- vol.26, no.2, pp.135-142, 2007 (Released:2007-04-15)
- 参考文献数
- 25
- 被引用文献数
- 100 202
The physiological effects of “Shinrin-yoku” (taking in the atmosphere of the forest) were examined by investigating blood pressure, pulse rate, heart rate variability (HRV), salivary cortisol concentration, and immunoglobulin A concentration in saliva. Subjective feelings of being “comfortable”, “calm”, and “refreshed” were also assessed by questionnaire. The subjects were 12 male university students aged from 21 to 23 (mean±SD: 22.0±1.0). The physiological measurements were conducted six times, i.e., in the morning and evening before meals at the place of accommodation, before and after the subjects walked a predetermined course in the forest and city areas for 15 minutes, and before and after they sat still on a chair watching the scenery in the respective areas for 15 minutes. The findings were as follows. In the forest area compared to the city area, 1) blood pressure and pulse rate were significantly lower, and 2) the power of the HF component of the HRV tended to be higher and LF/(LF+HF) tended to be lower. Also, 3) salivary cortisol concentration was significantly lower in the forest area. These physiological responses suggest that sympathetic nervous activity was suppressed and parasympathetic nervous activity was enhanced in the forest area, and that “Shinrin-yoku” reduced stress levels. In the subjective evaluation, 4) “comfortable”, “calm”, and “refreshed” feelings were significantly higher in the forest area. The present study has, by conducting physiological investigations with subjective evaluations as supporting evidence, demonstrated the relaxing and stress-relieving effects of “Shinrin-yoku”.