Before mankind began constructing cities and houses, nature was literally our home, as well as our living environment and recreation space. We are intrinsically connected to nature, sharing its molecules and chemical compositions. It stands to reason then that immersing ourselves in nature returns us to a peaceful and nature state of existence. Incidentally, scientific and psychological studies arrive at the same conclusion. Interacting with nature helps us heal from wounds, cope with difficulties and find our inner peace through its basic life elements: fresh air, naturally occurring things and silence.
Merely breathing in fresh air has been found to have immense physical and mental health benefits to people. Physicians have been recommending to people with ailments for years to travel to somewhere with clean air for recuperation. Polluted air carries toxins, but the fresh air found in a protected natural area brings more oxygen to the body and cleanses the system of toxins. It also helps restore and regulate brain function for mental clarity.
The elements of nature, such as plant life, rocks, rivers and more actually play a part in our health as well. Recent studies have found that being in close proximity of growing trees has health benefits for humans. There are also a variety of plants found in nature that are used as natural food and medicine. We all know which plants we can put into a garden or farm for food, but plants of the wild outdoors also have medicinal and nutritional benefits.
One of the most important things nature offers us is silence. Much of the stress and mental hardships we experience in our lives can be attributed to merely being overstimulated by the world we live in. We are required to process more information in this age than we ever have in the past and we are truly bombarded by it. Immersing ourselves in nature is the ultimate way of decluttering our minds and resetting our biological clocks, which is vitally necessary to our mental health.