Build Green Spaces to Build Immunity in Children

09/25/2023

Build Green Spaces to Build Immunity in Children

Accept the children the way we accept trees—with gratitude, because they are a blessing—but do not have expectations or desires. You don’t expect trees to change, you love them as they are.
Isabel Allende, Chilean-American Writer, Teacher, Journalist

In a first-of-its-kind effort to explore a causal relationship between green spaces and immunity, a 2020 Finnish study found a significant difference in the microbiomes of children who played in green spaces and those who played in spaces dominated by concrete, tile and gravel. A healthy microbiome—marked by the diversity of microbes that live in the digestive tract—has a direct, positive impact on our immune systems, including fostering T-cell growth, part of our adaptive immune response.

"When daycare workers rolled out a lawn, planted forest undergrowth (such as dwarf heather and blueberries), and allowed children to care for crops in planter boxes, the diversity of microbes in the guts and on the skin of the young kids appeared healthier in a very short space of time," noted the researchers. In fact, it took just 28 days for their microbiomes to ‘catch up’ to those of children who already had daily access to green spaces or forests.

"The results of this study support the biodiversity hypothesis and the concept that low biodiversity in the modern living environment may lead to an uneducated immune system and consequently increase the prevalence of immune-mediated diseases," the authors explained.

While the study was too small to be conclusive, it has planted the seeds for future research, adding to a long list of physical and mental health benefits of playing, learning and growing in nature-rich environments.

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