Several studies have shown that early exposure to nature can have a profound effect on your child’s long term well being. Nature has a positive impact on stress levels and depression in children. It can also have a positive impact on impulsivity, hyperactivity and attention-deficit disorder. Playing in nature can increase empathy in children and influence the way that they relate to one another. Children learn to work more collaboratively, build on other people’s ideas and it also enhances problem solving skills.
Exposure to nature has important physiological benefits too. Children are physically active in nature, in contact with Vitamin D from the sun, and the microbes in their environment. Sadly, researchers say that playing in nature has become an increasingly foreign concept in today’s society, due to the way we live, the places we live and advances in technology.
Immune system for kids – healthy gut
You might also be interested in a great book by a prominent pediatric neurologist from New York, called Healthy Food, Healthy Gut, Happy Child. Dr Maya Shetreat-Klein uses her book to advocate for getting your children out into nature and playing in the dirt. She stresses that so many chronic childhood illnesses can be prevented simply through a robust biodiversity of bacterial flora in our children’s stomachs. Boosting the immune system for kids can be achieved by eating biodynamic produce that has been grown in rich soil, and playing in the dirt as children.
Making mud pies and playing outside in nature has never been so important!
Playing in nature supports cognitive development
Nature is also good for children’s growing brains, as children start to ask questions about their environment – why is the sky blue? Why is grass green? Why do I see the moon during the day? Parents should encourage playing in nature, but schools can also provide opportunities for playing in nature by developing school kitchen gardens and natural play spaces, or caring for animals like free range chickens.
Children who play in nature tend to me more enthusiastic about learning, and can concentrate better at school. There is no better time than spring than to get back into nature and let your child experience the wide range of benefits that come from playing in natural environments.
References:
Layla Tucak (2016), Gut health, mental wellbeing and immunity linked to outdoor play. ABC News. Accessed 21 September 2016. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-27/nature-play-important-for-physical-and-mental-health/7791458
Healthy Food, Healthy Gut, Happy Child is available through Bluebird Books.
Image credit: 365 Days of Inspiration – WordPress
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