The Evidence for Green Prescriptions

The University of Exeter is running 'A Dose of Nature' project with medical, health and wellbeing and environmental organisations in Cornwall. The project follows a round-up of medical research on green prescriptions by Dr Dan Bloomfield. He has also written a blog on the topic for the BMJ website; part of a series that The Centre for Sustainable Healthcare is coordinating for the BMJ that looks at health, sustainability and the interplay between the two. Dr Bloomfield will be speaking at a sustainability summit hosted by the Royal College of Psychiatrists, while the issue of green prescriptions is being covered in a workshop at the NHS Forest Conference, which takes place on 7th October near Preston. If you are a doctor, medical student or work on the clinical side of public health and are interested in writing a blog for the BMJ website, please contact Mary Zacaroli.

If you are looking for more evidence-based research on the impacts of green space on health and wellbeing, a recent 3-day conference on the theme of trees and health saw some excellent presentations from speakers including two associated with the NHS Forest, Sharon Hosegood from Broomfield Hospital and Paul Nolan from the Mersey Forest. In a wide-ranging talk, Dr Kathleen Wolf from the University of Washington showed how trees impact positively on health from cradle to grave, while Dr Matilda Annerstedt van den Bosch explained her research on nature, stress and mental health. Sir Richard Thompson looked at how trees remove particulates from the air and the benefits of exercise in green spaces. If you are interested in planting trees that reduce pollen allergies, the impact of climate change on trees, how trees impact on chronic stress and non-communicable diseases or even just the health of trees, check out the very useful presentations on the Arboricultural Association's website.