January 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 39

May: What can park and
recreation professionals do
to provide more upstream
preventative care solutions
that combat these chronic
diseases?
Dr. Gupta: Part of the reason I
jumped at the opportunity to be
able to give that talk to your organization
at this time is because
I think we have really been reminded
during this pandemic of
just how important and healthy
it is for us to be outside. I talked
about the Shinrin-yoku forest
bathing example in Japan and
how [scientists] collected this
really remarkable data on how
quickly people's cortisol levels
dropped and blood pressure
dropped.
And there was a study (tinyurl.
com/2s35dek8)
that
came
out
today...that basically said four
weeks of mindful, intentional
movement outside in nature was
the same outcome as four weeks
of anti-anxiety medications for
the same individuals over that
time. That's great!
One of the things I was talking
about with some folks in Arizona
was that people fundamentally get
the idea that we want to preserve
nature. But I think the idea of really
being able to intermingle that
with the preservation of us as well
makes those two things sort of part
of the same. In saving nature, we
save ourselves. I don't want to dramatize
it, but I'm just saying that
it's all linked, and we shouldn't
think of the preservation of nature
as some isolated thing. It's really
important for what it is, but it's all
linked. From a messaging standpoint,
it's something I've thought
a lot about as I talk about just being
outside, exercising, outside, climate
change, whatever it might be
like. It's really about preservation
of everything that we know.
And then I finally say [on] a
more specific note, is I've lived in
several places around the country,
and I think there [have] been
some places where it's far more
accessible to be outside in a meaningful
way. And...that's part of
it as well - making sure that it's
accessible for all people...some of
what we're talking about here. So
continuing to encourage people to
get outside, showing the evidence
of why it's helpful and they need
it, tying these messages together
about the preservation of nature
and us, and making sure it's available
to everyone.
May: You spoke about the
importance of getting the
message out and access
to physical activity. What
role do you believe that the
medical field, or doctors
like yourself, play in
prescribing physical activity
to individuals? What is the
recommended dose?
Dr. Gupta: I did a podcast all
about ParkRx (parkrx.org), and
we got into some of these issues,
even the one that you're raising,
which is how do you dose something
like that? And, the reality is
we're not necessarily there at the
point where they can get that granular
about that sort of thing. But...
going back to the evidence, one
could argue that doctors should
just be doing this now, prescribing
nature and even understanding the
mechanism of phytoncides [the
organic compounds derived from
plants] and how they're affecting
our bodies and all of that. But I
do think the data helps, because it
helps people [to] be able to point
to something and say, " Look, four
weeks of intentional activity outside
is worth four weeks of anti-anxiety
medications. " Whatever
it may be...it makes it far more
objective, something for people
to hang their hat on. From the
medical community standpoint,
insurance companies might even
reimburse [for these types of programs],
which I think would create
a real movement around some
of that.
I think the medical role is to...as
always, to try and do the best thing
for the patient. But we know that
doing the best thing for the patient
more and more might be prescribing
a dose of nature as opposed to
a dose of medication. And now
the evidence is becoming increasingly
clear.
I'm trying to do my part. I think
a lot of people are trying to do their
part, getting the word out there,
and I think...we're going to hear
about that sort of thing more and
more from the medical community.
May: Are there any final
comments that you want to
share with us?
Dr. Gupta: I really enjoyed being
at your [conference]; it felt very
necessary to be able to talk to this
audience about something that's
so fundamental to all of us - just
being able to be outside in nature
and all the benefits that come with
that.... I think the pandemic was
a big reminder for a lot of people,
myself included. I kind of saw being
social as a luxury, being outside
as a luxury, and now I see it
as a necessity.
Kellie May is Vice President, Programs and Partnerships at
NRPA (kmay@nrpa.org). Vitisia Paynich is Executive Editor
and Director, Print and Online Content at NRPA (vpaynich@
nrpa.org).
PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G | J ANUAR Y 2 0 2 3
| Parks & Recreation
39
https://tinyurl.com/2s35dek8 https://tinyurl.com/2s35dek8 http://www.parkrx.org
January 2023 - Parks & Recreation

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