Study Examines Health Benefits of National Forests

Here’s the link.

Outdoor recreation requires effective management and protection of the natural spaces where things like biking, camping, hiking and hunting are done. Sound like a no-brainer? The U.S. Forest Service wanted some research to back it up anyway – just in case.

Hence its recent study of how national forests contribute to the public health. The results were published in this month’s issue of the Journal of Forestry under the title, “A National Assessment of Physical Activity in US National Forests.”

Authored by Jeffrey Kline, Randall Rosenberger and Eric White, the study used as its starting point growing national concern about problems associated with inactivity, such as chronic disease and obesity. It then looked at a number of physical activities people do in national forests and estimated the energy they expend while doing them.

The authors concluded, “National forest contributions to physical activity among the American public likely are significant and could be enhanced with continued and targeted investments in recreation infrastructure and public outreach,” according to an abstract.

Here’s a link to the study.

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