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Living near green space makes you 2.5 years younger: study

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Issam Ahmed, Agence France-Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="The High Street at the Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. February 18, 2020. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/tvpatrol/03/07/bgc_20200307.jpg"/><figcaption>The High Street at the Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. February 18, 2020. <em>Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>WASHINGTON, United States - City parks and green spaces help counter heat, boost biodiversity, and instill a sense of calm in the urban jungle.</p><p>They also help slow biological aging, with people who have access to green spaces found to be on average 2.5 years biologically younger than those who do not, according to a new study published Wednesday in Science Advances.</p><p>&quot;Living near more greenness can help you be younger than your actual age,&quot; Kyeezu Kim, the study&#x27;s lead author and a postdoctoral scholar at Northwestern University&#x27;s Feinberg School of Medicine, told AFP.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/culture/spotlight/11/06/21/5-of-manilas-wide-open-spaces-open-again-to-visitors">Five wide open spaces to visit in Manila that are not the Dolomite Beach</a></li></ul><p>&quot;We believe our findings have significant implications for urban planning in terms of expanding green infrastructure to promote public health and reduce health disparities.&quot;</p><p>Exposure to green spaces has previously been linked with better cardiovascular health and lower rates of mortality.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1LQR_2GYabg?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><p>It&#x27;s thought that more physical activity and social interactions are at play, but whether parks actually slowed down aging on a cellular level has been unclear.</p><p>To investigate, the team behind the study examined DNA chemical modifications known as &quot;methylation.&quot;</p><p>Prior work has shown that so-called &quot;epigenetic clocks&quot; based on DNA methylation can be a good predictor of health conditions such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, cognitive function, and a more accurate way of measuring age than calendar years.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="The University of the Philippines Los Banos" edible="" garden="" has="" become="" a="" favorite="" place="" of="" locals="" for="" weddings="" and="" photoshoots.="" Photo="" courtesy="" Office="" Public="" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/news/03/26/00ediblegarden.jpg"/><figcaption>The University of the Philippines Los Banos&#x27; edible garden has become a favorite place of locals for weddings and photoshoots. <em>Photo courtesy of Office of Public Relation, UPLB</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>Kim and colleagues followed more than 900 white and Black people from four American cities -- Birmingham, Chicago, Minneapolis, and Oakland -- over a period of 20 years, from 1986-2006.</p><p>Using satellite imaging, the team assessed how close the participants&#x27; residential addresses were to surrounding vegetation and parks, and paired this data with blood samples taken in years 15 and years 20 of the study, to determine their biological age.</p><p>The team constructed statistical models to evaluate the results, and control for other variables, such as education, income, and behavioral factors like smoking, that might have affected the results.</p><p>They found that people whose homes were surrounded by 30 percent green cover within a five kilometer (three mile) radius were on average 2.5 years younger biologically compared to those whose homes were surrounded by 20 percent green cover.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="People take in and admire the brightly lit trees decorated for the Festival of Lights at the Ayala Triangle Gardens in Makati. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/life/12/08/20201208-ayala-triangle-garden-christmas-display-jc.jpg"/><figcaption>People take in and admire the brightly lit trees decorated for the Festival of Lights at the Ayala Triangle Gardens in Makati. <em>Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>The benefits were not evenly shared. Black people with more access to green space were only one year biologically younger, while white people were three years younger.</p><p>&quot;Other factors, such as stress, qualities of the surrounding green space, and other social support, can affect the degree of benefits of green spaces in terms of biological aging,&quot; said Kim, explaining the disparities required further study.</p><p>For example, parks in deprived neighborhoods used for illicit activities might be less frequented, negating the benefits.</p><p>Next steps might involve investigating the link between green spaces and specific health outcomes, she added. It&#x27;s also not yet clear how exactly greenery reduces aging -- only that it does, added Kim.</p><p>Epidemiologist Manuel Franco, of the University of Alcala and Johns Hopkins, called the research a &quot;well designed study.&quot;</p><p>&quot;We have more and better scientific evidence to increase and promote the use of urban green spaces,&quot; added Franco, who was not involved in the study.</p><div><strong>ia/jh</strong></div><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

People who have access to green spaces are found to be on average 2.5 years biologically younger than those who do not, according to a new study.

Living near green space makes you 2.5 years younger: study

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Living near green space makes you 2.5 years younger: study

Issam Ahmed,

Agence France-Presse

Published Jun 29, 2023 06:51 AM PHT

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