Healthy living
Exercise and fitness
Natural health service
Getting in touch with nature could help you stay fit and prevent a range of health problems say conservationists behind a new health initiative called Natural England
Natural England hopes that encouraging people to engage with the environment will help save billions for the NHS by combating a range of health conditions such as obesity and depression.
Helen Phillips, Natural England's Chief Executive, said: "Prevention is better than cure but up to 97 per cent of NHS spend goes on treating people after they have become ill. We are working with the NHS to plan ways in which the environment is used as a 'natural' health service that gets, and keeps, more people healthy."
Natural England's health adviser, Dr William Bird, added: "Increasing evidence suggests that both physical and mental health are improved through contact with nature. Yet people are having less contact with nature than at any other time in the past. This has to change!"
If you like the idea of getting in touch with nature but don't know how to go about it, you may like to consider your local 'green gym'.
The green gym scheme, which was set up by the British Trust of Conservation Volunteers (BTCV), enables people to get fitter and healthier through conservation volunteering, gardening and food growing. It is free to participants.
Tom Flood, BTCV's Chief Executive, said: "The great thing about the BTCV Green Gym is that people are exercising without even realising it, and their environment also benefits. Participants, from school children to pensioners, gain a sense of mental well-being, increased self-confidence and new friends."
Information on this site is for interest only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should consult your own doctor about any specific health concerns.