Forest bathing, that is, taking a mindful walk or hike through the woods, is nothing new. It’s something I’ve done since I could walk and people were mindfully spending time among trees for centuries before we coined the term “forest bathing” in the eighties.
Multiple medical experts on my Well Enough podcast have told me that a walk in nature, a hand on a tree trunk or time spent thinking about trees can improve mood. And the NHS is now directly recommending time in nature, with new “green social prescribing” initiatives urging those with poor mental health to spend more time outdoors (something they have been doing in Sweden for a while).
Still, recent data from a global study shows that the UK is one of the places where people feel the least connected to nature. So to mark National Tree Week, I spoke with experts to learn more about the benefits of forest bathing and why a mindful walk in the woods can make all the difference to your health.
What is forest bathing?
“Shinrin-yoku” translates as “bathing in the forest atmosphere”, or “taking in the forest through our senses”. It was conceived of as an intentional practice as a response to high stress levels in Japanese city workers by government minister Tomohide Akiyama in the eighties.
The walking part is obviously good for you. But forest bathing is considered more of a workout for the mind than the body. The key part is simply being in nature, connecting with it through all of our senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch, dropping out of the mind and into the body. It sounds simple but this is something we rarely do, surrounded as we are by the distractions of modern life.
“We are often told that distress is ‘all in the mind’, says clinical psychologist Puffin O’Hanlon. “Actually, distress lives in our bodies, and in our relationships. And more specifically, distress radiates from points of disconnection – from the natural world, from each other, and between parts of ourselves.
“In much of the Western world we have come to separate body from mind and to privilege mind,” says O’Hanlon, who recently led me on a forest bathing tour through Richmond Park, where she runs Project Centaur – an organisation offering nature and equine therapy. “We are taught to experience and navigate the world through language, and the problem-solving, impulse-controlling functions of the prefrontal cortex – our so-called rational brains.
“But the more we rely on the human rational brain to lead the way, the more difficult it becomes to direct attention or energy to the myriad other ways of being, problem solving and communicating.”
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Indeed, some of us need help to do this, which is why all manner of wellness studios, hotels and organisations now offer to guide visitors through forest bathing and mindful hiking experiences, showing us how to focus on the senses and connect with the natural world.
During a stay at Mallorca’s clifftop Jumeirah hotel, I was able to book a brilliant guided mindfulness hike up into the mountains. I’ve been lucky to forest bathe in Japan too, in the forests surrounding Kinosaki and Kyoto, where I traversed glades, climbed mossy staircases and paused at temples to reflect. And I’ve also experienced many forest bathing in programmes closer to home, in the New Forest, Hertfordshire and Sussex.
But obviously, you don’t need to be led by anyone or pay a fee to walk mindfully and focus on your senses. A guide might help, but for the most part, this practice is about embracing simplicity, stillness and awareness.
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Forest bathing has been shown to reduce stress hormones and blood pressure (Getty/iStock)
Science-backed benefits of being in nature
If you still need convincing, there are various studies that show that forest bathing makes us feel better. Olga Terebenina and Gary Evans, the founders of The Forest Bathing Institute and authors of The Healing Power of Trees, write in the book’s preface: “Groundbreaking research has shown that forests are able to boost our immune system and even affect our physiology after only a couple of hours spent mindfully among the trees.”
A 2022 study indicated that forest bathing has the power to reduce blood pressure, heart rate and stress hormone levels.
The study’s author, Qing Li, says, “My research team has established a new medical science called Forest Medicine; a new interdisciplinary science that studies the effects of forest environments on human health.”
“In the profile of mood states (POMS) test, shinrin-yoku reduces the scores for anxiety, depression, anger, fatigue and confusion, and increases the score for vigour, showing preventive effects on depression.”
A more recent 2025 study corroborated these findings, showing that “forest bathing interventions might improve mental and physical health, reduce blood pressure, improve sleep quality and boost immunity, as well as alleviate depression, anxiety, and stress”.
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O’Hanlon explains that our brains and bodies are naturally in tune with the scents, shapes and vibrations of green spaces, which is why spending more time in nature can help improve wellbeing. “We are wired for this stuff. We are highly sensitive to the smell of petrichor – the compounds released by bacteria in the soil when it rains after a dry spell. We are fluent in fractals – the repeating patterns of nature found in petals and waves.
“But without attention, there is limited awareness, and as awareness decreases, so does connection. It is really rather difficult for many of us to feel connected to nature, to each other, or to what is happening in and around us in the present moment.”
The Earth has a natural frequency, known as the Schumann resonance, which is a set of electromagnetic waves around the planet, with the fundamental frequency being approximately 7.83Hz. This fundamental frequency is often called the “earth’s heartbeat”, and there are ongoing scientific studies into its effects on human behaviour and wellbeing. What forest bathing seeks to achieve is a quieting of outside noise and an opportunity to tap back into this frequency.
Some studies show that our brain activity seems to align with Earth’s natural electromagnetic rhythms. This could explain why changes in these fields can affect our mood, sleep or concentration and why spending time in nature away from cities, noise, technology and other distractions can allow us to reconnect with natural rhythms.
There is another benefit to interacting with nature, which is that it encourages our desire to protect it. By reminding ourselves of the importance of green spaces and natural ecosystems, we seek to preserve them and integrate into them, where previously we had separated ourselves. And that can only be a good thing.
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