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2014 -04 -17 [Image: NYC, Central Park via Pio3 / Shutterstock] <br />If You Live Near A Park, You're More <br />Likely To Be Happy <br />Green space puts people in a better mental state, with "significant and sizable" effects. Better get gardening. <br />If you want to be happy, living near a park could be a good idea. More and more research shows a relationship between green <br />space and higher levels of mental health. <br />The latest comes from the University of Wisconsin- Madison. Researchers looked at 2009 survey data that asked 2,500 residents <br />about depression, anxiety, and stress. They next analyzed 229 neighborhoods for vegetation cover. Those places with more trees <br />tended to be happier, and the association was "significant and sizable," according to a paper discussing the results. <br />Those places with more trees tended to be happier, and the association was "significant and sizable." <br />In fact, the relationship of happiness to trees was similar to well -known correlations, like unemployment. "The most interesting <br />thing is that decreased symptoms attributed to green space were similar to decreases observed for other important determinants <br />of mental health, including insurance status and income," wrote Kirsten Beyer, an assistant professor at the Medical College of <br />Wisconsin, in an email. <br />The paper shows the difference in well -being levels between areas with zero tree canopy cover and 100% canopy cover was <br />greater than the well -being difference between someone having and not having health insurance. <br />The research, which is published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, could provide <br />further reasons to invest in green space, the authors write. "Our work indicates that 'greening' could be considered a potentially <br />low -cost, high - return investment among urban and regional planners to positively influence population mental health," they say. <br />In other words, don't just invest in parks because they look nice and offer exercise for joggers. Do it to make people feel better, <br />too. <br />http:// www.fastcoexist.conV3029115 /if- you - live - near -a- park -youre -more- likely -to -be -happy <br />