I saw this in this week’s SDRN mailing. This is really interesting and relates closely with recent discussions of the OHN members.

SDRN Mailing: Monday 16th November 2009
View the HTML version online:
http://www.sd-research.org.uk/post.php?p=1124

DUTCH EVIDENCE OF A LINK BETWEEN GREEN SPACES AND HEALTH.
In a new study that assessed how GP-classified illnesses relate to green spaces in their patients’ living environment, researchers in the Netherlands have found more evidence that links green spaces to better health, and better mental health in particular. The study was undertaken by Dr Jolanda Maas from the EMGO Institute at VU University Medical Centre in Amsterdam and colleagues, and was published as an Online First paper on 15th October in the ‘Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health’. The researchers used health indicators from general practitioner (GP) assessments to investigate suggestions that living near green spaces is linked to better health. The researchers examined data on illnesses recorded by 195 GPs in practices throughout the Netherlands. The illnesses recorded by the GPs were classified using the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC), allowing the researchers to examine 24 different diseases in seven different categories. The researchers also used a database where, by inserting postal codes, they could find out the percentage of green space within a one and three kilometer radius of a household. They then used multilevel logistic regression to find which clusters of diseases most strongly linked to how much green space was nearby. When they did the analyses they first controlled for demographic and socio-economic characteristics to minimize any potential effect they may have had on the results, and then looked at what effect they did have. The results showed that: there was a positive link between lower disease prevalence and more green space; the annual prevalence rate of 15 of the 24 disease clusters was lower in environments that had more green space in a 1 km radius; the strongest link was for anxiety disorder and depression; the link was stronger for children and for people with a lower socio-economic status; and, the link was strongest in slightly urban areas and not apparent in very strongly urban areas. More… (http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/167561.php).

Tags: better mental health, evidence, greenspace, health