VR forest bathing can reduce stress, scientists find

Spending time outdoors often reduces stress and helps with overall well-being. However, not all have the luxury of practicing “forest bathing” in real conditions.

It’s already well established that being in nature has an overall positive effect on our physical and mental well-being.

The Japanese even have a name for this practice, Shinrin Yoku, also known as forest bathing. This practice helps people lower their blood pressure and reduce stress.

Going out for a walk in a forest or a park might seem like an easy task, but sometimes not everyone has the opportunity to do so.

With this in mind, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin, Germany, wanted to find whether the same positive outcomes of forest bathing could be achieved in virtual reality.

The project included a high-quality 360° virtual reality (VR) video of the Douglas fir forest in Sonnenberg Nature Reserve, located in Parchim, Germany. The video also included original sounds and scents from Douglas fir essential oils.

The study participants were fully immersed in this virtual forest environment, with all images, sounds, and scents on. Then, the process was repeated with partial immersion, with only one of the stimuli activated.

In cases when only hearing or scent was activated, participants were in a neutral virtual environment to minimize the influence of VR technology, reports Science Daily.

One hundred and thirty participants were first shown images that caused stress. Then, they were given VR glasses to start one of the four virtual forest bathing scenarios.

The study revealed that when participants were exposed to all three sensors (images, sounds, and scents) at once, they experienced a more drastic mood improvement and a better connection with nature than when they were exposed to the same stimuli separately.

The virtual forest bathing not only improved participants' mood but also had positive effects on their working memory, which allows people to store, process, and retrieve information.

The study has limitations, as the positive results are attributed to a specific area. However, it does encourage further research to better understand how virtual nature helps people restore their well-being.

Experiencing nature in digital surroundings could help in cases when people can’t access forests or parks due to physical or geographical limitations or have to spend time in facilities such as hospitals, notes Simone Kühn, head of the study and Director of the Center for Environmental Neuroscience at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development.