What Is Shinrin-yoku
During the early 1980’s, Japan introduced a national health programme of Shinrin-yoku which means “taking in the forest atmosphere” or more commonly known as “Forest Bathing”. It has become a cornerstone of preventive health care and healing in Japanese medicine.
Backed by scientific research, the act of spending time in the forest is known to have a plethora of benefits for our health. A Balm for our wellbeing as such.
The Benefits of Forest Bathing
The trees emit organic compounds called phytoncides (their essential oils) which protect them against disease and insects. The tree’s essential oils help..
- Increase our body's Natural Killer (NK) cells
- Boost our immune system
- Reduce Blood Pressure
- Reduce Stress
- Improve Mood
- Improve Mental Performance & Creativity
- Increase energy levels and improve sleep
Stress Relief
Spending time in the forest seems to significantly mitigate the root cause of a multitude of ailments - Stress. Excess stress is associated with greater risk of depression, heart disease, infectious diseases, diabetes, skin conditions, asthma, and arthritis, among many other ailments. An estimated 75% to 90% of all doctor visits are for stress-related issues.
Fight Disease
These tree essential oils (phytoncides) are high in Monoterpenes and Sesquiterpenes such as a-pinene and limonene that significantly enhance human ‘natural killer (NK) cell activity. Thes NK cells are a type of lymphocyte (a white blood cell) and a component of the innate immune system. NK cells play a major role in the rejection of both tumours and virally infected cells.
Experience Shinrin-yoku at Home
Our founder Gareth is currently in the midst of developing a bath & body range based around the Shinrin-yoku concept. We want you to feel enveloped by the forest atmosphere and bathed in the benefits of it's essential oils. The forest feeling and therapeutic benefits will be created with an abundance of woody notes, resting upon a base of earthy elements with hints of green and touches of citrus. Hope this sounds good to you too!
The new range will initially include a bath oil, body oil, essential oil blend and possibly a candle. We are really excited about this new range which will hopefully be available soon.
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Information Sources:
https://www.natureandforesttherapy.org/about/science
http://www.shinrin-yoku.org/shinrin-yoku.html