ReviewInternational journal of environmental research and public health2016
Physiological Effects of Nature Therapy: A Review of the Research in Japan.
Review in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 128 papers, 9 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
128 citing papers in PubMed, 9 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 359 citations in OpenAlex.
- Virtual Reality Interventions for Stress Reduction in the General Population: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Pooled it
- Forest therapy for psychological stress and emotional disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC public health · 2026Pooled it
- The Effects of Outdoor versus Indoor Exercise on Psychological Health, Physical Health, and Physical Activity Behaviour: A Systematic Review of Longitudinal Trials.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Pooled it
- Forest therapy using virtual reality in the older population: a systematic review.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Pooled it
- What Activities in Forests Are Beneficial for Human Health? A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- The Effects of Forest Therapy on Immune Function.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Pooled it
- How Should Forests Be Characterized in Regard to Human Health? Evidence from Existing Literature.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Pooled it
- Medical empirical research on forest bathing (Shinrin-yoku): a systematic review.Environmental health and preventive medicine · 2019Pooled it
- Physiological Benefits of Viewing Nature: A Systematic Review of Indoor Experiments.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2019Pooled it
- Hinoki Cypress Aroma Facilitates Swallowing via Premotor and Hypothalamic Down-modulation: A Randomized Within-subject Crossover fMRI Study.Dysphagia · 2026Trial
- Smelling Wellness: Associations Between Botanic Garden Scentscapes and Human Health Gains.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Trial
- Spending time in a forest vs. a virtual forest simulation: qualitative and quantitative effects on stress perception and psychological wellbeing in a randomized cross-over trial of highly sensitive persons.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Trial
- Forest soundscapes improve mood, restoration and cognition, but not physiological stress or immunity, relative to industrial soundscapes.Scientific reports · 2025Trial
- Relaxation Effect of Nature Sound Exposure on Gambling Disorder Patients: A Crossover Study.Journal of integrative and complementary medicine · 2023Trial
- Cardiorespiratory Interaction and Autonomic Sleep Quality Improve during Sleep in Beds Made fromInternational journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Trial
- Forest Therapy Alone or with a Guide: Is There a Difference between Self-Guided Forest Therapy and Guided Forest Therapy Programs?International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Trial
- The Mood-Improving Effect of Viewing Images of Nature and Its Neural Substrate.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Trial
- Virtual Reality Relaxation for Patients With a Psychiatric Disorder: Crossover Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2021Trial
- Comparative Study of the Restorative Effects of Forest and Urban Videos during COVID-19 Lockdown: Intrinsic and Benchmark Values.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Trial
- Effects of Walking in a Forest on Young Women.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2019Trial
68 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Humans have evolved into what they are today after the passage of 6-7 million years. If we define the beginning of urbanization as the rise of the industrial revolution, less than 0.01% of our species' history has been spent in modern surroundings. Humans have spent over 99.99% of their time living in the natural environment. The gap between the natural setting, for which our physiological functions are adapted, and the highly urbanized and artificial setting that we inhabit is a contributing cause of the "stress state" in modern people. In recent years, scientific evidence supporting the physiological effects of relaxation caused by natural stimuli has accumulated. This review aimed to objectively demonstrate the physiological effects of nature therapy. We have reviewed research in Japan related to the following: (1) the physiological effects of nature therapy, including those of forests, urban green space, plants, and wooden material and (2) the analyses of individual differences that arise therein. The search was conducted in the PubMed database using various keywords. We applied our inclusion/exclusion criteria and reviewed 52 articles. Scientific data assessing physiological indicators, such as brain activity, autonomic nervous activity, endocrine activity, and immune activity, are accumulating from field and laboratory experiments. We believe that nature therapy will play an increasingly important role in preventive medicine in the future.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.