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A subsequent study specifically looked at how walking in nature influences rumination - which has been linked to the onset of depression and anxiety - using fMRI technology to map brain activity. Participants took a 90-minute walk in either a natural or urban setting and had their brains scanned before and after the walk. They were also surveyed on self-reported rumination levels, along with other psychological classifications. Heart rate and pulmonary functions associated with physical exertion levels were taken into account. The results?"[P]articipants who walked in a natural setting versus an urban setting reported decreased rumination after the walk, and they showed increased activity in the subgenual prefrontal cortex, an area of the brain whose deactivation is affiliated with depression and anxiety-a finding that suggests nature may have important impacts on mood." [source]
We've allowed ourselves to be persuaded that we need someone else to think and speak for us. And we've allowed ourselves to become so timid in the face of offensive words and ideas that we've bought into the idea that we need the government to shield us from that which is ugly or upsetting or mean.Also check out: MindMatters: "Everybody Knows That!" - Mass Beliefs and the Ideas That Shape Them
The result is a society in which we've stopped debating among ourselves, stopped thinking for ourselves, and stopped believing that we can fix our own problems and resolve our own differences.
Comment: Objective:Health #26 - Mindfulness - Corporate Scam or Key to Nirvana?