Effects of forest bathing (shinrin-yoku) on levels of cortisol as a stress biomarker: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Int J Biometeorol
; 63(8): 1117-1134, 2019 Aug.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-31001682
ABSTRACT
Forest bathing is a traditional practice characterized by visiting a forest and breathing its air. This review aims to investigate the effects of forest bathing on levels of salivary or serum cortisol as a stress biomarker in order to understand whether forest bathing can reduce stress. Medline/PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar were systematically searched for relevant articles. The quality of included trials was assessed following the criteria of the NIH dedicated tools. Afterwards, a qualitative and quantitative synthesis of retrieved evidence was performed. A total of 971 articles were screened; 22 of them were included in the systematic review and 8 in the meta-analysis. In all but two included studies, cortisol levels were significantly lower after intervention in forest groups if compared with control/comparison groups, or a significant pre-post reduction of cortisol levels was reported in the forest groups. The main results of the meta-analysis showed that salivary cortisol levels were significantly lower in the forest groups compared with the urban groups both before (MD = - 0.08 µg/dl [95% CI - 0.11 to - 0.05 µg/dl]; p < 0.01; I2 = 46%) and after intervention (MD = - 0.05 µg/dl [95% CI - 0.06 to - 0.04 µg/dl]; p < 0.01; I2 = 88%). Overall, forest bathing can significantly influence cortisol levels on a short term in such a way as to reduce stress, and anticipated placebo effects can play an important role in it. Further research is advised because of the limited available data.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Hidrocortisona
/
Caminhada
Tipo de estudo:
Clinical_trials
/
Qualitative_research
/
Systematic_reviews
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2019
Tipo de documento:
Article