大學生只需在戶外花10分鐘，就能緩解壓力大綱

College Students Can Eliminate Stress By Spending Just 10 Minutes Outdoors
大學生只需在戶外花10分鐘，就能緩解壓力
College can be a very stressful time for young adults, and this can be very taxing on their mental health. Fortunately there is a very accessible remedy for this stress — nature. Recent research shows that spending as little as 10 minutes in a natural setting can help relieve students of their college stress.
對於年輕人來說，大學是一段壓力很大的時期，這對他們的心理健康並不好。幸運的是，有一種很容易緩解這種壓力的方法——大自然。最近的研究表明，只要在自然環境中待上10分鐘，就可以幫助學生緩解在大學中的壓力。
The review from Cornell University evaluates numerous studies on nature’s effects on the mental health of college students to find an effective “nature prescription” for students.
康奈爾大學的這一綜述文章評估了大量關於大自然對大學生心理健康影響的研究，目的是爲學生找到一種有效的“大自然處方”。
“It doesn’t take much time for the positive benefits to kick in — we’re talking 10 minutes outside in a space with nature,” says lead author Gen Meredith, associate director of the Master of Public Health Program and lecturer at the College of Veterinary Medicine, in a media release. “We firmly believe that every student, no matter what subject or how high their workload, has that much discretionary time each day, or at least a few times per week.”
“這些積極的好處不用花很長時間就會表現出來，我們現在談論的只是在戶外與大自然親密接觸的10分鐘時間。”研究報告的主要撰寫人、公共衛生碩士項目副主任兼獸醫學院講師Gen Meredith在一次媒體發佈會上說：“我們堅信，每個學生，不管他們的學科是什麼，工作任務有多少，每天都有這樣的自由支配的時間，或者至少每週能有那麼幾次時間。”
The studies included in the review compare the effects of a “green” environment versus an urban setting on the physical and mental health of students. The measures used in the studies include students’ heart rate, blood pressure, cortisol levels (a stress hormone), mood and their ability to focus. The review of the studies indicates that 10-50 minutes of sitting or walking in nature are the most effective at improving these measures.
這篇綜述中包括的研究比較了“綠色”環境和城市環境對學生身心健康的影響。研究中使用的指標包括學生的心率、血壓、皮質醇水平(一種壓力荷爾蒙)、情緒和注意力。對這些研究的綜述表明，在大自然中靜坐或步行10-50分鐘是改善這些指標的最有效方法。
“It’s not that there’s a decline after 50 minutes, but rather that the physiological and self-reported psychological benefits tend to plateau after that,” notes co-author Donald Rakow, associate professor in the School of Integrative Plant Science.
“並不是說在50分鐘後指標就會變差，而是生理益處和自我報告的心理益處在50分鐘後會趨於平穩。”論文合著者、綜合植物科學學院副教授Donald Rakow指出。
One of the critical aspects of this review is that it provides students with something they can do on a daily basis to relieve their stress. Rakow comments: “While there is a lot of literature on longer outdoor programs, we wanted to quantify doses in minutes, not days.”
這篇綜述的一個重要角度是，它爲學生提供了他們每天都能做到的方法，來減輕他們的壓力。Rakow評論道：“雖然有很多關於長時間戶外活動的文獻，但是我們想將這一藥劑量化到分鐘而非天數。”
Researchers hope that their findings will encourage universities to integrate nature into their campuses and provide opportunities for students to take advantage of these resources. They note that several universities have organized “Nature Rx” or “Park Prescription” programs that encourage students to spend time exploring the natural world. Programs like this can help students add regular doses of nature to their daily routine.
研究人員希望他們的發現能夠鼓勵大學將大自然融入校園，併爲學生提供能利用這些綠色資源的機會。他們指出，一些大學已經組織了“大自然處方”或“公園處方”的項目，鼓勵學生花時間探索自然世界。這樣的項目可以幫助學生將自然元素加入到日常生活中。
“Prescribing a dose can legitimize the physician’s recommendation and give a tangible goal.” says Meredith. “It’s different than just saying: ‘Go outside.’ There is something specific that a student can aim for.”
“這樣開出的藥方能使醫生的建議合法化，並給出一個明確的目標。” Meredith說：“這和僅僅說‘走出去’是不同的。這能讓學生有的放矢。”
The review is published in Frontiers in Psychology.
這篇文章發表在《心理學前沿》雜誌上。