The benefits of the woods, in a new university study

From Thoreau’s seminal classic 'Walden,' to the newer Japanese concept of forest bathing, the idea that spending time in the woods is good for you is not a new one. And now, a university study aims to find out just what these positive effects are.

Some thirty young volunteers participated today in a project by the Autonomous University of Barcelona. Researchers aimed to analyze how the forest (in this case, that of Montseny, central Catalonia) interacts with the human body - on a microscopic level.

Head researcher for the project Albert Bach explained how he and his colleagues are “trying to see whether, in a Mediterranean forest – like what we have throughout Catalonia – we are capable of, only by walking, absorbing these chemical compounds that trees have.” He continued that it’s “especially interesting” for the researches “to see what [the chemical compounds] are converted into,” once inside the body.

From these results, it will then be possible to look deeper into how this affects us, both on a mental and physical level, when it comes to things like neurodegeneration, inflammation, or the forming of tumors.  The tests were done with oral swabs and blood samples.

The group of volunteers was between the ages of 20 and 40 – and some already had high hopes, for what relevant test results could lead to. Participant Gemma Teixidó explained that this could lead to “placing importance on forests and what’s around us,” things we “something destroy,” which could ultimately help efforts to save them.

The research results will be released in about a year. And what better way to spend the next twelve months, than remembering to take a walk in the woods, once in a while.