By Dr Lewis Elliott 

TV presenter and outdoor advocate Julia Bradbury recently took a closer look at the science of nature and well-being, visiting the European Centre for Environment and Human Health as research for her upcoming book – Hack Yourself Healthy.

The book is focusing on simple, science-backed ways to boost well-being and Julia’s visit allowed her to get hands-on with two fascinating exercises designed to demonstrate how researchers study the connection between nature and health.

And, as you might expect, the results not only backed up findings from much more robust research, but also pointed to something many of us already feel instinctively: spending time outdoors can be good for both mind and body.

The first exercise was inspired by Attention Restoration Theory, which suggests that time in nature can help restore mental focus and cognitive function. Julia put this idea to the test by completing a mentally demanding task before and after a one-hour coastal walk. Meanwhile, a control participant stayed indoors performing a similar mentally demanding task, providing a comparison point for Julia’s results.

While this wasn’t a formal study, the results were intriguing. After her time outside, Julia’s reaction times improved, while the control participant’s slowed down. These findings echo a broader systematic review by centre researchers, which found that nature exposure can help restore our attentional resources.

The team discuss their results.

In the second activity, researchers including myself, Dr Lewis Elliott, crunched the numbers on Julia’s recent outdoor adventures to estimate their potential public health benefits. By analysing the energy expenditure of her nature-based exercise and projecting its impact over a year, they reached a potential welfare cost saving of £1,732 – a small-scale reflection of broader public health benefits linked to regular outdoor activity.

Zooming out, these numbers are in line with our previous research findings: one centre study led by Dr Mathew White estimated that the welfare value of nature-based exercise for the English adult population could be as high as £2.2 billion.

Although these experiments were illustrative rather than full-scale studies, they provided valuable insight into how scientists measure nature’s effects on health, reinforcing the growing body of research linking time outdoors with both psychological and physical benefits.

Julia’s visit was a reminder that even small, everyday moments in nature – whether it’s a lunchtime walk, a weekend hike, or just a few deep breaths of fresh air – can contribute to better health. No doubt Hack Yourself Healthy will have plenty more insights into how we can all make the most of nature’s benefits – backed by science and tried and tested by Julia herself.