Find Peace in the Pines

Feeling uptight and stressed? Then have a peek at the pines or ogle a few oaks. A Texas researcher says looking at trees can reduce stress and help us work more efficiently.

Professor Roger Ulrich of the University of Texas says his research has found that within three to five minutes of glimpsing a tree, people begin to shed the effects of stress. It works particularly well for auto drivers whose route to work takes them along leafy tree-lined streets.

"The effects when we look at trees goes well beyond aesthetics to include a stress-reducing or relaxation effect," Ulrich says. "Our feelings are improved, our blood pressure can be reduced and our muscles relax."

He used video simulators to mimic test subjects' journeys to work -- some down country roads, others in built-up urban areas. He says those who drove with trees and countryside in their peripheral vision were "much less stressed and better equipped to deal with the stressful arrival at work."

Deal with the pressures. Read ThirdAge's Stop Stress From Burning You Out.