The Benefits of Birds and Nature for People with Dementia

The healthcare community, urban planners, and government agencies are all acknowledging what researchers have been saying for decades: Green spaces can revitalize a person physically, psychologically, and socially. Environmental psychologist, Kathleen Wolf at the University of Washington has gathered more than 1,800 research papers spanning the past 40 years—most published in the last decade—that show that green spaces in cities can provide a number of benefits, including: faster healing; reduced ailments, such as high blood pressure and diabetes; increased coping and learning capacity; promotion of a sense of community and self-esteem; and, in some cases, reduced crime. Nature’s healing powers…