Trees are good for our health and that of the earth

T

rees are good for the health of the earth’s climate system, at least in terms of making is suitable for humans and beyond that, they are simply good for human health.

Human behaviour has enriched the level of carbon dioxide in the earth’s atmosphere, seriously disrupting the global climate system, but it is trees that play a key role in absorbing the gas to return a balance to the earth making it suitable for all life, including humans.

But there is more as The Washington Post reports in its story - “Want to improve your health? Go live near some trees”.

“In a new paper published Thursday, a team of researchers present a compelling case for why urban neighbourhoods filled with trees are better for your physical health. The research appeared in the open access journal Scientific Reports.

“The large study builds on a body of prior research showing the cognitive and psychological benefits of nature scenery — but also goes farther in actually beginning to quantify just how much an addition of trees in a neighbourhood enhances health outcomes.

“The researchers, led by psychologist Omid Kardan of the University of Chicago, were able to do so because they were working with a vast dataset of public, urban trees kept by the city of Toronto — some 530,000 of them, categorized by species, location, and tree diameter — supplemented by satellite measurements of non-public green space (for instance, trees in a person’s back yard).”