"Forest air is medicine to breathe," says forest bathing expert Jörg Meier. And this applies not only to the air in the forest, but also to the forest floor.
On your next walk in the forest, take a handful of forest soil in your hand and smell it.
This not only activates your sense of smell, which brings you back to the here and now and thus automatically reduces stress. Smelling fresh forest soil is a true elixir of health.
The reason for this is, among other things, the fungi and bacteria that live in the forest floor. First and foremost and best studied, the Mycobaccterium vaccae .
Studies in mice have shown that exposure to this bacterium increases serotonin levels (the "feel-good hormone") in the blood, while simultaneously decreasing cortisol levels (cortisol is also known as the stress hormone).
These effects are so dramatic that the pharmaceutical industry has developed a drug from the bacterium that is used for depression.
That Mycobacterium vaccae has other positive effects on health and well-being. For example, contact with the bacterium also improved the cognitive performance of test mice in a maze.
In other words, smelling fresh forest soil can clear your head and boost your thinking. This can help to find new ways to better deal with problematic situations in everyday life.
P.:
Quite fittingly, the forest floor was used as a Soil of the Year 2024 . 😀