Effects of Urban Forest Therapy Program on Depression Patients

Poung-Sik Yeon, In-Ok Kim, Si-Nae Kang, Nee-Eun Lee, Ga-Yeon Kim, Gyeong-Min Min, Chung-Yeub Chung, Jung-Sok Lee, Jin-Gun Kim () and Won-Sop Shin ()
Additional contact information
Poung-Sik Yeon: Department of Forest Sciences, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
In-Ok Kim: Graduated Department of Forest Therapy, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
Si-Nae Kang: Graduated Department of Forest Therapy, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
Nee-Eun Lee: Graduated Department of Forest Therapy, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
Ga-Yeon Kim: Graduated Department of Forest Therapy, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
Gyeong-Min Min: Graduated Department of Forest Therapy, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
Chung-Yeub Chung: Gwanghwamun Forest Psychiatric Clinic, Seoul 03156, Republic of Korea
Jung-Sok Lee: Gwanghwamun Forest Psychiatric Clinic, Seoul 03156, Republic of Korea
Jin-Gun Kim: Korea Forest Therapy Forum Incorporated Association, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
Won-Sop Shin: Department of Forest Sciences, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 20, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Depression is a common serious mental health condition that can have negative personal and social consequences, and managing it is critical for treating depression patients. Forest therapy is emerging as a promising non-pharmacological intervention to improve mental health. However, although the effectiveness of forest therapy programs using forests far from the city has been proven, it is not well known that urban forests can be easily accessed in daily life. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the effects of an urban forest therapy program on depression symptoms, sleep quality, and somatization symptoms of depression patients. To evaluate this, a randomized controlled trial (RCT) design was employed. A total of 47 depression patients participated in this study (22 in the urban forest therapy program group and 25 in the control group). The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD), the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and the Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15) were administered to each participant to assess the effects of the urban forest therapy program. The results of this study revealed that depression patients in the urban forest therapy program had significantly alleviated depression symptoms and improved sleep quality and somatization symptoms compared to the control group. In conclusion, this study demonstrates the possibility that the urban forest therapy program could be used as an effective non-pharmacological treatment to alleviate depression disorder.

Keywords: forest therapy program; urban forest; depression (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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