Looking at nature photos may be enough to reduce your work stress levels

There is no shortage of research emphasizing the advantages of spending time in nature. Various studies show that being outside improves our vision and improves our mental wellbeing. While the reasons for this are assumed to be numerous and different, the effect is quantifiable – described as feeling as wonderful as a $10,000 rise or even seven years younger.

But the amazing thing is that it looks that our access to nature does not even have to be actual in order for us to gain some of these benefits. According to a new study, simply staring at still photos of nature is enough ‘natural’ stimuli to reduce our stress levels.

Researchers from the Netherlands’ Vrije University Medical Centre recruited 46 people for an experiment to examine how looking at photos of nature helped calm a person’s anxieties. Participants were outfitted with sensors that monitored their heart rate and stress levels, and they had to complete mathematical tasks on a computer that was programmed to work at both normal and stress-inducing levels. Following that, they would watch one of two sets of images.

Both image sets featured metropolitan surroundings, but one showed greenery among the skyscrapers and the other a more austere setting devoid of any natural flora.

According to the findings, which were published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, keeping a few photos of greenery around your work desk might not be a bad idea. When participants in the trial saw natural imagery, their stress levels decreased due to the activation of their parasympathetic nervous system, which handles some rest activities.

Viewing green scenes may thus be particularly effective in supporting relaxation and recovery following a stressful period, and thus could serve as an opportunity for micro-restorative experiences as well as a promising tool in preventing chronic stress and stress-related diseases.

Interestingly, the green stimulus appears to help with stress recovery, but it cannot operate as a buffer, according to the researchers. Viewing images of greenery prior to the stressful exam had no pre-calming effect on the individuals.

The green images used in the experiment were kept as simple and drab as possible to avoid distracting the participants with their aesthetic or’majestic’ attributes. This could indicate that any old photographs of nature or greenery could serve to calm you down when you’re feeling hot and uncomfortable – a discovery that even the researchers were surprised by.

“[S]hort periods of viewing green images may help people recuperate from stress,” lead researcher Magdalena van den Berg told The New York Times’ Gretchen Reynolds. “It’s remarkable to see an effect with such faint, even uninteresting visual stimuli – no stunning green views, no sound, no odors, etc.”

While the study’s sample size was small, and the findings should not be regarded definite, this is not the first study to suggest that looking at photographs of greenery can help people relax. Although the researchers admit that seeing at actual nature in the real world would definitely have a stronger impact than looking at a 2D representation.

A 2014 study conducted by academics at the University of Queensland in Australia discovered that filling workplace spaces with pot plants made employees happy and might increase productivity by up to 15%. (Think about this if you work indoors and aren’t seated near a window.)

And, if pot plants aren’t appropriate for your workplace, you now know that you might be able to get by with only a handful of photos hung up in your cubicle!