[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/6276\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EAccess to parks and trees prolongs life\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EProfessor Mark Nieuwenhuijsen from the Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology (CREAL) in Barcelona, Spain, says that access to nature does not merely top up your wellbeing, but it might actually be a necessary condition for good health.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Lack of green space causes detrimental health effects,\u2019 he said. \u2018Green space is necessary for healthy psychophysiological functioning (and) there could be a set level for good health.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis is important as more than half of the world\u2019s population lives in urban areas, a figure which is set to grow \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.who.int\/gho\/urban_health\/situation_trends\/urban_population_growth_text\/en\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Emore than 1 % per year\u003C\/a\u003E between now and 2030. However, there is currently no agreement on just how much greenery cities should contain for optimal health.\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003E\u2018How much green space do you need? There are questions still remaining.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EProfessor Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, CREAL, Spain\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EProf. Nieuwenhuijsen coordinates the EU-funded PHENOTYPE project, which is aiming to build up the evidence base for so-called urban greening by understanding how exactly it can influence your health and why. The idea is to feed into decisions made by landscape architects, urban planners and policymakers.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018At the moment there are no guidelines for green space. It would be nice to be able to give more information to urban planning to make sure that there\u2019s provision of green space. How much green space do you need? There are questions still remaining.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPHENOTYPE researchers are conducting studies of the health effects of green space in four different parts of Europe: Lithuania, the Netherlands, the UK and Spain. So far they have found that an increase in surrounding greenness leads to higher birth weight for babies, reduced blood pressure during pregnancy, and lower obesity levels in children.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThey have also found that an increase in surrounding greenness is associated with better mental health and self-perceived physical health.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHowever, the project is also uncovering suggestions that not all greenery is equal. Prof. Nieuwenhuijsen says that being surrounded by greenery, such as living on streets lined with trees or being able to see vegetation from your office window, may have greater health benefits than having access to a park.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EObesity\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs for why it is good for you, initial indications are that it is more complicated than the fact that living close to a park could encourage people to take more exercise and lead an active lifestyle.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn a study of coronary artery patients in Kaunas, Lithuania, researchers found that people benefitted more from walking in parks than when they did the same amount of exercise but walked on busy urban streets.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EProf. Nieuwenhuijsen says that there is some good evidence that the reason behind this effect could be a reduction in stress levels. \u2018There are some studies that show a reduced blood flow in the subgenual prefrontal cortex (which controls stress) when people are exposed to green space.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOther mechanisms could include a reduction in air pollution and an increase in social contacts.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile the exact mechanisms are still under investigation, Prof. Nieuwenhuijsen believes that humans are hard-wired to appreciate the benefits of vegetation.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018For thousands of years we\u2019ve been living in nature. Our bodies are geared to green space.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EGallery - urban greening in practice\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\n \n\n\n\n\u003Csection class=\u0022ecl-gallery\u0022 data-ecl-auto-init=\u0022Gallery\u0022 data-ecl-gallery-visible-items=\u00228\u0022 data-ecl-gallery\u003E\u003Cul class=\u0022ecl-gallery__list\u0022\u003E\u003Cli class=\u0022ecl-gallery__item\u0022\u003E\u003Ca\n href=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/hm\/TURAS%20bee.jpg\u0022\n data-ecl-gallery-item\n class=\u0022ecl-gallery__item-link\u0022aria-label=\u0022The brown-banded carder bee \u2013 one of the UK conservation priority species \u2013 has shown up in the Barking Riverside Development in east London after the TURAS project brought in green roofs, landscaping and even one of the largest \u2018bee hotels\u2019 according to the Guinness Book of Records. The 16-square-metre nesting site made of bamboo and wood attracts solitary bees, insects that do not form colonies and make up approximately 90 % of the UK bee population. Image courtesy of TURAS\u0022\u003E\u003Cfigure class=\u0022ecl-gallery__image-container\u0022\u003E\u003Cpicture class=\u0022ecl-picture ecl-gallery__picture\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg \n class=\u0022ecl-gallery__image\u0022\n src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/hm\/TURAS%20bee.jpg\u0022\n alt=\u0022The brown-banded carder bee \u2013 one of the UK conservation priority species \u2013 has shown up in the Barking Riverside Development in east London after the TURAS project brought in green roofs, landscaping and even one of the largest \u2018bee hotels\u2019 according to the Guinness Book of Records. The 16-square-metre nesting site made of bamboo and wood attracts solitary bees, insects that do not form colonies and make up approximately 90 % of the UK bee population. Image courtesy of TURAS\u0022 \n \/\u003E\u003C\/picture\u003E\u003Cfigcaption\n class=\u0022ecl-gallery__description\u0022\n data-ecl-gallery-description\n \u003EThe brown-banded carder bee \u2013 one of the UK conservation priority species \u2013 has shown up in the Barking Riverside Development in east London after the TURAS project brought in green roofs, landscaping and even one of the largest \u2018bee hotels\u2019 according to the Guinness Book of Records. The 16-square-metre nesting site made of bamboo and wood attracts solitary bees, insects that do not form colonies and make up approximately 90 % of the UK bee population. Image courtesy of TURAS\u003C\/figcaption\u003E\u003C\/figure\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/li\u003E\u003C\/ul\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022ecl-gallery__footer\u0022\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022ecl-gallery__info\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong class=\u0022ecl-gallery__info-total\u0022 data-ecl-gallery-count\u003E0\u003C\/strong\u003Emedia items\u003Cbutton class=\u0022ecl-button ecl-button--ghost ecl-gallery__view-all\u0022 type=\u0022submit\u0022 data-ecl-gallery-all data-ecl-gallery-collapsed-label=\u0022See\u0026#x20;all\u0022 data-ecl-gallery-expanded-label=\u0022Collapse\u0022\u003ESee all\u003C\/button\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdialog class=\u0022ecl-gallery__overlay\u0022 data-ecl-gallery-overlay\u003E\u003Cheader class=\u0022ecl-gallery__close\u0022 data-ecl-gallery-overlay-header\u003E\u003Cbutton class=\u0022ecl-button ecl-button--ghost ecl-gallery__close-button\u0022 type=\u0022submit\u0022 data-ecl-gallery-close\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022ecl-button__container\u0022\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022ecl-button__label\u0022 data-ecl-label=\u0022true\u0022\u003EClose\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Csvg\n class=\u0022ecl-icon ecl-icon--s ecl-button__icon ecl-button__icon--after\u0022\n focusable=\u0022false\u0022\n aria-hidden=\u0022true\u0022\n data-ecl-icon\u003E\u003Cuse xlink:href=\u0022\/themes\/contrib\/oe_theme\/dist\/ec\/images\/icons\/sprites\/icons.svg#close\u0022\u003E\u003C\/use\u003E\u003C\/svg\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/button\u003E\u003C\/header\u003E\u003Csection class=\u0022ecl-gallery__slider\u0022\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022ecl-gallery__slider-media-container\u0022 data-ecl-gallery-overlay-media\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/section\u003E\u003Cfooter class=\u0022ecl-gallery__detail\u0022 data-ecl-gallery-overlay-footer\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022ecl-container\u0022\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022ecl-gallery__detail-actions\u0022\u003E\u003Ca\n href=\u0022\u0022\n class=\u0022ecl-link ecl-link--standalone ecl-link--icon ecl-link--icon-after ecl-gallery__share\u0022\n data-ecl-gallery-overlay-share\n\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022ecl-link__label\u0022\u003EShare\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Csvg\n class=\u0022ecl-icon ecl-icon--fluid ecl-link__icon\u0022\n focusable=\u0022false\u0022\n aria-hidden=\u0022true\u0022\n \u003E\u003Cuse xlink:href=\u0022\/themes\/contrib\/oe_theme\/dist\/ec\/images\/icons\/sprites\/icons.svg#share\u0022\u003E\u003C\/use\u003E\u003C\/svg\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\n class=\u0022ecl-gallery__detail-description\u0022\n data-ecl-gallery-overlay-description\n \u003EThe brown-banded carder bee \u2013 one of the UK conservation priority species \u2013 has shown up in the Barking Riverside Development in east London after the TURAS project brought in green roofs, landscaping and even one of the largest \u2018bee hotels\u2019 according to the Guinness Book of Records. The 16-square-metre nesting site made of bamboo and wood attracts solitary bees, insects that do not form colonies and make up approximately 90 % of the UK bee population. 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