Being in nature is good for you physically and mentally, including during and after pregnancy. Getting outside lowers your stress, decreasing cortisol levels, heart rate, and blood pressure, and can reduce your risk of preterm birth and small size for gestational age during pregnancy. Nature can also help boost your mood, increase your energy, and improve your ability to focus, cooperate, and empathize with others. Exposure to natural views and walking outside can also help in your recovery from major health events like a birth. (1-2)
Being in nature is good for your baby, too. Being outside boosts brain and language development by bringing your baby in contact with new sounds, sights, smells, and textures. You can talk to them as you explore to encourage “serve and return” interactions - those early sounds baby makes and you respond to like a conversation. Exposure to daylight helps newborns develop their circadian rhythms, or their natural sleep cycles, cuing when they should sleep and wake. Playing in natural environments (with fresh air and real soil, grass, and plants) can also improve babies’ and toddlers’ immune and physical health, well-being, and cognitive development. (3-5)
Being outdoors during and after pregnancy can be a simple part of your everyday life no matter where you live. It could be as simple as sitting and reading in your backyard or on your porch, walking around your neighborhood or a local park, or sitting on a bench by a river or lake. There are lots of low-impact ways to be active outdoors during pregnancy and postpartum, such as walking, outdoor yoga or stretching, hiking, meditating, biking, paddle boarding, kayaking, swimming, or fishing. You can enjoy the space you are closest to, including greenspace (such as urban parks, woods, or mountains) and bluespace (the beaches, oceans, lakes, or rivers).
The mission of WildCrest is to help you get outside comfortably during this stage of your life. We’ll create the best jackets and apparel to make sure you can benefit from the outdoors as the seasons turn. As your body changes, your outdoor activities will likely change as well. We want to build gear that will take you from walking around your neighborhood to getting back out on the slopes and peaks.
Acknowledgements:
While there are many safe ways to be outside, always talk to your trusted medical provider about what activities are safe and healthy for you and your baby. We also acknowledge that we don’t all have the same access to healthy and safe outdoor spaces. WildCrest is devoted to sharing information about ways everyone can get outside during their journey and improving access to the outdoors for all.
Research:
(1) These statements reference the largest recent systematic review of greenspace exposure and health outcomes, conducted in 2018 by researchers in the United Kingdom. The article reviews literature from 103 observational studies and 40 interventional studies across 100 health outcomes.
- Systematic Review Citation:
- Pregnancy-specific Study Citations:
Agay-Shay K., Peled A., Crespo A.V., Peretz C., Amitai Y., Linn S. Green spaces and adverse pregnancy outcomes. J. Occup. Environ. Med. 2014;71:562–569. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
Dadvand P., de Nazelle A., Triguero-Mas M., Schembari A., Cirach M., Amoly E. Surrounding greenness and exposure to air pollution during pregnancy: an analysis of personal monitoring data. Environ. Health Perspect. 2012;120:1286. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
Dzhambov A.M., Dimitrova D.D., Dimitrakova E.D. Association between residential greenness and birth weight: systematic review and meta-analysis. Urban For. Urban Green. 2014;13:621–629. [Google Scholar]
Dadvand P., de Nazelle A., Figueras F., Basagana X., Su J., Amoly E. Green space, health inequality and pregnancy. Environ. Int. 2012;40:110–115. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
(2) Patients who were assigned a room with a window view of a natural setting had shorter postoperative hospital stays, had fewer negative evaluations in nurse notes, and took less pain medicine than their matched comparisons who had a window with a view of a brick wall. Citation: Ulrich, R. S. View through a window may influence recovery from surgery. Science. 1984 Apr 27;224(4647):420-1. [NIH]
(3) Outdoor play promotes early language development, health, and well-being in young children. Citations: Undiyaundeye, F. (2014). Outdoor Play Environment in Early Childhood for Children. European Journal of Social Science Education and Research, 1(1), 14–17. [Journal] and Cooper, A. Nature and the Outdoor Learning Environment: The Forgotten Resource in Early Childhood Education. International Journal of Early Childhood Environmental Education. 2015. 3(1): 85-97. [ERIC]
(4) 12 week-old babies who slept better at night were exposed to twice as much early afternoon daylight compared with their more wakeful peers. Citation: Harrison, Y. The relationship between daytime exposure to light and night-time sleep in 6-12 week-old infants. Journal of Sleep Research. 2004 Nov 22; 13 (4): 345-352. [PubMed]
(5) When a Finnish daycare introduced biodiverse playgrounds (natural dirt, peat, sod, and flowers from a forest floor) children experienced significant improvements in immune function. Other studies have found reduced rates of allergies among children that spend more time outside. Citations: Roslund, M. et al. Biodiversity intervention enhances immune regulation and health-associated commensal microbiota among daycare children. Science Advances.2020 Oct 14; 6 (42). [Science] and Holbreich, M. et al. Amish children living in northern Indiana have a very low prevalence of allergic sensitization. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 2012 Apr 19. 129 (6): 1671-1673. [Journal]