Aaron Reuben of outsideonline.com has written a fascinating article about a new trend of doctors actually prescribing time outside in parks and nature as a way to combat a myriad of health problems, from anxiety to obesity.
There’s a movement brewing in America’s hospitals, clinics, and outpatient treatment centers. As depression and anxiety rates climb and the obesity epidemic rages on – by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s last count, one in three U.S. adults and nearly one in five children are now obese – health care providers are losing patience with traditional tools. They aren’t abandoning pills and procedures by any means, but to help their patients avoid growing heavier, sadder, or sicker, they are looking far outside their offices.