Urban greenspace and risk of mental illness following the COVID-19 lockdown – Results from the COVICAT-study, Spain
Year: 2022
Type: conference-abstract
Abstract: BACKGROUND AND AIM The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a substantial toll on mental health. Greenspace exposure is generally found to prevent mental illness, but the protective impact during the COVID-19 pandemic is insufficiently understood. We analysed if low exposure to and lack of greenspace views from home were associated with increased risk of depression following the COVID-19 lockdown. METHODS The COVICAT Study is a population cohort of over 10,087 individuals from northern Spain (Catalunya) who were recruited pre-pandemic and re-contacted after the confinement in 2020. The depression subscale (HADD) of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was used to measure mental health. Greenspace exposures were assessed by self-reports on views from home and by percentage of greenspace in residential buffer zones of 300, 500, and 1,000 m. We used log-binominal regression models to test the association between lack of greenspace views or low percentage and risk of moderate and severe depression, controlling for individual- and area-level covariates. RESULTS In our sample, 5.9% reported severe and 21.4% moderate depression. We found an increased risk of moderate (RR=1.37; 95%CI=1.22, 1.53) and severe depression (RR= 2.46, 95%CI=1.71, 3.56) among participants with lack of greenspace views from home. Low neighbourhood percentage of greenspace was related to higher risk of moderate depression in 300m and 1,000m buffer zones (RR=1.16; 95%CI=1.05, 1.28 and RR=1.14; 95%CI=1.03, 1.27 respectively), but no association was found to severe depression. CONCLUSIONS Our study suggests that, in particular, lack of greenspace views but also low percentage of greenspace, may increase risk of depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. This may be due to missing out on greenspaces’ stress reducing impact, which can contribute to improved coping with challenging life situations, such as a lockdown. The findings should be considered in urban planning to support coping strategies during future pandemics. KEYWORDS Greenspace, COVID-19, depression
Source: ISEE Conference Abstracts
Institution: Barcelona Institute for Global Health
Language: English
Topic: Urban Green Space and Health
Subfield: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4316924804