The Green Guardian: how nature and time outdoors strengthens the heart
Nature has always been a source of inspiration, calm and quietude for humans. And the science is just catching up - with astonishing results.
From quiet forests to dramatic coastlines, and sand dunes to stars— humans have historically been fond of spending their free time looking at nature. However, as we move increasingly indoors with the rise of sedentary, hyper-convenient lifestyles, our time in nature is dwindling, and this could have serious implications for our heart health. Luckily, this also means that nature might just be one of the keys to effortlessly improve heart health and a bunch of other health factors!
Despite there being some genetic predispositions to heart disease, it’s currently estimated that 70% to 80% of CVD burden is caused by non-genetic factors. This includes lifestyle choices like diet and exercise, but also environmental factors like air pollution, neighbourhood greenness and, most importantly for this issue, exposure to nature.
Heaps of research is being done to understand nature’s effect on heart health. Some of the pioneers of this research are Andreas and Kirsten Beyer, that have recently published a literature-wide review of the studies done on nature exposure and heart health.
Feel free to read it if you like, but here’s a summary of its amazing findings on what people experienced after nature exposure:
🫀 Lower Blood Pressure & Heart Rate and Better Heart Rate Variability
Numerous studies found consistent reductions in blood pressure after forest bathing, park walks, or green exercise with nature videos—even in just one or two sessions. Heart rate also significantly drops during or after time in nature, suggesting a heart-healing effect. Finally, nature exposure, especially walking in forests, improves HRV—a marker of good cardiovascular health and overall fitness.
😮💨 Faster Recovery After Physical Strain
After physical exertion or stress, people recover faster when exposed to natural views or environments, with their heart rate and blood pressure going back to baseline faster than urban controls.
🪴 Reduced Inflammatory and Stress Biomarkers
Forest bathing has been linked to lower inflammation, oxidative stress, and stress hormones like cortisol and angiotensin—key players in heart disease progression.
🧘♂️ Activation of the "Rest and Digest" Nervous System
Nature exposure boosts parasympathetic activity and lowers sympathetic (fight-or-flight) response—a powerful heart health booster that shuts down chronic stress and inflammation.
⚡️ Rapid and Repeatable Effects
Even short exposures—15 to 30 minutes—can yield benefits, and repeated sessions show cumulative effects over days or weeks.
Now, you’ve learned just how important nature can be for heart health. However, we understand that not everyone can consistently go outdoors for hours at a time most days — we have jobs to do! Here are some actionable tips to make sure that no matter your circumstances, you can use nature’s healing to boost your heart:
LEVEL 1 🌱
These are for people that have very little time for nature that want fast, bang-for-your-buck nature additions to their lifestyle:
Swap your computer and phone background to natural scenery. It’s quick, easy and free — and many studies have shown that just a picture of your favourite scenery can improve heart rate and blood pressure.
Add a small potted plant to your desk. Who doesn’t love a little bit of the wild at home? Use the cortisol-reducing power of plants to keep your stress levels in check while at work!
Listen to nature sounds before bed or while meditating. Their soothing nature and blood-pressure-slashing calmness will prime you for an excellent night’s sleep or a laser-focused meditation session.
LEVEL 2 🪴
These are for people willing to invest a little more into nature and deepen its benefits to them.
Invest in an essential oil diffuser. One of the main drivers for a forest’s effect on our health is the incredible compounds that trees and plants produce, and essential oils are just a concentrated form for that! Especially well-studied favourites are hinoki, pine, cedarwood, sandalwood and lavender oil.
Take a nature-filled evening walk. If you’re lucky enough to live next to a park, the seaside, or any natural view, take full advantage of it by combining your wind-down walk with its healing powers. See how good you feel afterwards! Bonus points if you can get close to it, particularly trees and plants.
LEVEL 3 🌳
These are for those that are able to go above and beyond to really immerse themselves in nature.
Go for a hike on weekends. While quick nature fixes are great, they’re simply not as powerful as fully immersing yourself in it for hours at a time. Do some digging to see what nature is around you! In terms of timing, the Finnish have a good rule of thumb: 5 hours in nature a month seems to hit the spot!
Fill your house or garden with plants. Weird and wonderful houseplants are available everywhere nowadays, so bring them into your home to add personality, life and heart-boosting goodness to your living space.
Acquaint yourself with forest bathing. This powerful Japanese practice has lots of science behind it, and the heart benefits are immense. Check out Forestry UK’s blog on how to get started, or read the evidence from the father of forest bathing, Dr. Yoshifumi Miyazaki, in his book, and get your friends in on it!
👀 NEXT WEEK’S ISSUE 👀
🫁 We’ll be tackling how breathing impacts the heart. It’s our most basic and essential function, but still holds more than one trick up its sleeve to supercharge our heart health.
Subscribe now so you don’t miss it. 💌
🔥 CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK 🔥
🌱 Find one way of adding nature to your day this week.
Whether it’s swapping your desktop background to your favourite scenery, listening to some nature sounds before going to bed or while meditating, or rediscovering your local park - anything counts and everything a step in the right direction for your heart.
💡 Forward this newsletter to someone who cares about their health—and help them take better care of their heart and mental health!
📩 ENGAGE WITH US 📩
This week’s Question:
We’d love to hear what some of your experiences of nature are and how they’ve positively impacted your health — just reply to this email or message us at heartguardhealth@gmail.com
Louis & Toby
HeartGuard
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