Summer 2009 - Scottish Natural Heritage

Healthier Scotland
Recent research suggests that nature can help meet all of
these targets by providing:
– Green exercise Being active outdoors can improve
people’s physical and mental health.
– Natural recovery The natural heritage, and being involved
in its care, can help with recovery from physical and mental
stresses.
– Illness prevention Just being outdoors can deliver
various health and well-being benefi ts, as well as help
people guard against future illness.
– Wider benefi ts Experience of nature and looking after it
can lead to stronger and more inclusive communities.
– Direction for the young Healthier lifestyles result from
positive interest in the natural world at a young age and
encouraging outdoor activity.
“Doctors and health professionals are more and more
aware of the role that contact with nature and being
active outdoors can play in creating a healthier Scotland,”
commented Pete Rawcliffe, SNH’s quality of life group
manager.
“We can all feel physically and mentally better by getting
out and about more. And you don’t have to be super-fi t to
enjoy the benefi ts. Just being active outdoors can go a long
way towards making you feel good. It’s fun too, whether
you’re out on your own, with friends or family, or as part of an
organised group.”
Scotland certainly needs to develop new approaches
that can help improve the nation’s health, given its history of
long-standing and major health issues, including:
– Heart disease This is still one of the major causes of
early death in Scotland and it plays a big part in health
inequalities.
– Obesity More than half the population are classifi ed as
overweight, with nearly a quarter defi ned as obese.
Obesity levels are also high and increasing among schoolaged
children.
– Mental health Depression and similar disorders were the
fi fth most common group of conditions reported in
doctors’ surgeries in 2005/06.
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