Planting Trees in Public Spaces Leads to Healthier Society

University of Canterbury research has suggested that planting trees in public places could lead to a healthier society.

The university research analysed the activities of 12,500 New Zealanders and found people living near parks and green spaces were less likely to be overweight or obese.

“Park creation and planting in existing public spaces may serve as low-cost disease prevention options,” Professor Simon Kingham said.

“We found that increased neighborhood deprivation and decreased access to neighborhood green spaces were both significantly associated with increased odds of being overweight and/or obese. Increased access to green space was associated with high levels of walking, while decreased access to green space was associated with low levels of walking.”

It was probably the first study in New Zealand to evaluate the potential role of environmental characteristics in influencing obesity of becoming overweight, adding to evidence from the United States, Australia, Canada and Europe.

Original article by Xinhua, February 5, 2015.

Photo by Greg O’Beirne.