Newborns living near trees tend to be healthier, researchers say. Photo: AFP
It's a little-known theory, although one that has been studied by scientists for several years: living near trees is thought to help reduce the risk of preterm birth and contribute to the good health of newborns.
The benefits of green space for human health are well established. It has been shown, for example, that they promote physical activity, reduce stress and pollution, reduce medication use and even reduce socio-economic inequalities in mental health.But proximity to nature also has an impact on the number of premature births, according to a United States study published in the journal Science of The Total Environment.
Conducted by professors at Drexel University, this research followed over 36,000 pregnant women who gave birth between Jan 1, 2015, and Dec 31, 2020, residing in Portland, Oregon, where over 36,000 trees were planted between 1990 and 2020.The number of trees planted within a 100m radius of the participants' addresses was evaluated.
"We found that tree planting around maternal address was associated with increased birthweight as well as a reduced probability of a small-for-gestational-age or preterm birth," the researchers write in their paper.In other words, mothers living in areas where trees were planted over the past 30 years were more likely to give birth at term, and their babies had higher birth weights, than those living further away from tree-planted areas.
Specifically, living within 100m of at least 10 trees is associated with an increase of about 50g in birth weight, which was the case for 2,879 babies in the sample studied
"Fifty grams may not seem like a lot, but if every baby in our sample gained 50g at birth, that means 642 fewer babies considered small for gestational age, and at higher risk for worse development later in life," says senior author Yvonne Michael, a professor and interim chair in the Dornsife School of Public Health, quoted in a news release.
The study also notes that older trees may provide some additional benefits to those recently planted, such as improved air quality and reduced noise pollution from road traffic.
The researchers says tree planting around maternal address was associated with increased birthweight as well as a reduced probability of preterm birth. Photo: Freepik
Low-cost way to improve public health
This study is far from being the first to highlight a link between a reduction in premature births and proximity to green space.But the novelty lies in the methodology, which focuses specifically on recently planted trees and over a precise time period.
"Existing tree cover is often closely tied to factors like income, education and race, making it difficult to fully account for other possible explanations when studying birth outcomes.
By focusing on newly planted trees, we were able to reduce the bias – essentially treating it as a natural experiment," explains Michael.
"This is another data point showing that planting trees is a relatively easy and low-cost way to improve public health from the earliest stages of a life," she concludes.
While the natural environment and climate have scientifically demonstrated impacts on premature births, the risk of post-term pregnancies is much less well studied.However, recent Australian research has looked into the subject, suggesting a link between prolonged pregnancy and global warming, particularly in cases of exposure to poor air quality and extreme temperatures. – AFP Relaxnews
