communing with nature - good for your collagen?

So this dermatologist and psychiatrist, Dr. Amy Wechsler, was on the Today Show plugging her book,  “The Mind-Body Connection- 9 Days to Reverse Stress Aging and Reveal More Youthful Beautiful Skin”.

A lot of the stuff she talked about was kind of expected- simplify, exercise, etc.  But one thing she said, that I loved, was “go green”.  Meaning take time every day to get out into nature.  She said it helps prevent the release of Cortisol- a stress hormone, that breaks down collagen and causes wrinkles.

It actually reminded me of something I heard about Audrey Hepburn (who had flawless skin).  One of her biographies said, “She had no religion except a belief in nature. A belief that if you walk outside on a clear cool day among the flowers and let nature's beauty reach your heart, that you could put everything into perspective.”  Isn’t that so beautiful? 

Because it’s hard to fit a trip to nature in during a lunch break in NYC, I make nature come to me.  I sit on an empty park bench and throw lunch remnants on the ground next to me.    Thankfully, the wildlife in NYC will eat just about anything.  I’ve seen pigeons fight over half-eaten BBQ chicken wings.  (At which point Ethan Hawke usually flashes through my head, because he was in that movie where the soccer team’s plane crashed in the Andes and they ate each other.) 

But I digress.

When I toss down crumbs, all types of sparrows, chickadees (and pigeons with BBQ sauce on their faces) swoop down and squirrels come hopping over.  It kind of makes me feel like Snow White.

 

Here I am now.  Surrounded by a squirrel, birds and a giant rat wearing a burglar’s mask. (Oh, wait that’s a raccoon.)

Sitting with my nature posse always helps me forget my worries. So why not take a few quality minutes with nature today (or at the very least listen to John Denver’s “Rocky Mountain High”).  It’s good for the spirit and the collagen. 

What do you think?  Does your skin look better when you spend time in/with nature?

Comments

[stella]

my skin does not necessarily look better when i spend time outside, but i find that i care less. so maybe that's the key.
in fact, if i spend long enough hiking or snowshoeing or at the beach, i find i care less about most any part of my body or even what i'm wearing. it may be harder on others, but it's good for me!

[jenny]

I find that care less thing always makes people look more relaxed. Then they get that relaxed vacation-like, inner glow, which can't be bought. Not even in a really big Sephora:)

[Elle]

Does walking my dog while she frantically tries to sniff everything count as being in nature? Hmmm.

Also: "(At which point Ethan Hawke usually flashes through my head, because he was in that movie where the soccer team’s plane crashed in the Andes and they ate each other.)" I have TOTALLY had that thought before, watching seagulls tear apart chicken nuggets. :)

[jenny]

Glad to hear you had the Ethan Hawke thought as well. That either means I'm not totally crazy or that you're crazy too:)

[Elle]

Jenny, I will be happily crazy with you any day! :) Your blog always cracks me up.

[Emily]

Well, I have always worked in the veterinary field, and almost all my coworkers looked a lot younger than their actual age... I do believe it's because we all really love what we do (= less stress).

[jenny]

That's funny Emily. My sister is a veterinarian she looks a lot younger than her age.