Nature Deficiency: Research on the Physical Health Consequences

A recent Guardian article explored 'the luxury effect'—the pattern of higher plant and animal diversity in wealthier urban neighbourhoods. The piece highlighted research on everything from lizards in Phoenix to birds across European cities, consistently finding more biodiversity where there's more money. Here in London, this pattern is familiar: wealthier areas (just look at Richmond for example) generally have bigger private gardens and better-maintained public parks.

What particularly caught our attention, however, was the article's suggestion that this biodiversity disparity could have direct physical health implications, beyond the well-documented mental health benefits of nature exposure. This inspired us to delve into the emerging research on nature deficiency and its effects on the body—and what we discovered goes far deeper than we expected.

From Environmental Poverty to Bodily Poverty

We already know children who grow up with pets develop fewer allergies, likely through microbial exposure. What's now becoming clear is that general nature exposure operates through similar pathways, fundamentally shaping our immune function.

Nature deficiency refers to the loss or decline of nature in our living environment, which the research indicates, also translates into microbial and chemical deprivation, impaired immune regulation, low-grade inflammation, and increased disease risk (1).

Research reveals stark differences between urban and rural gut microbiomes: urban populations show reduced diversity, altered bacterial ratios, and changes in key bacterial genera (2).

Put simply, city dwellers' internal ecosystems look different from those of rural residents—and not in a good way.

And this really matters because our gut microbiota produces metabolites that fuel physiological processes whilst regulating immune responses (3).

The evidence extends beyond correlation. Research tracking populations over time shows gut health markers declining in parallel with biodiversity loss in their surroundings (1). The biodiversity hypothesis proposes that contact with diverse natural environments enriches the human microbiome and protects against inflammatory disorders (1). When tested, this proves remarkably robust...

Intervention Studies: Soil, Skin, and Immunity

The human body connects to wider nature through eating, touching, and breathing—a crosstalk mediated mainly by microbes and biogenic volatile organic compounds (1).

Controlled interventions demonstrate these connections clearly. When researchers added soil blocks to daycare playgrounds, something remarkable happened: within four weeks, children's skin microbiota became enriched, with measurable immunomodulatory effects (4). In other words, touching soil changed the microbial communities living on the children's skin in ways that affected their immune systems. Continuing the intervention for two years sustained these benefits (5).

Another study enriched playground sand with microbially diverse soil and compared it against a placebo. After just two weeks, children playing in the enriched sand had notably higher skin bacterial richness and diversity, accompanied by immune regulation changes (6)—their bodies were literally becoming more microbially diverse through play.

Even indoor interventions show promise: office workers exposed to indoor green walls showed enriched skin microbiota whilst reducing inflammatory markers and increasing anti-inflammatory ones (7). The plants weren't just decorative—they were changing the workers' biology.

Through our nature-connection experiences in London, where we enjoy forest bathing in woodlands from Hackney Marshes to Epping Forest, we witness the immediate effects—reduced stress, heightened awareness, reconnection. This research would also indicate that whilst participants walk amongst ancient oaks, breathing forest air and touching bark, their bodies are being microbially enriched.

The Double Disadvantage

This research however would suggest troubling inequity operating at two levels.

First, residents of less affluent urban areas experience reduced access to biodiverse spaces—smaller gardens, fewer parks, limited exposure to the protective microbial diversity that supports immune health.

Second—and cutting across class lines—office workers spending 40 hours weekly indoors in urban centres experience their own microbial poverty.

Research shows this indoor-centric approach produces increased cortisol, elevated blood pressure, and heightened sympathetic nervous system activity (8). But beyond these stress markers, office workers experience the same microbial deprivation as residents of less biodiverse areas—days spent in "urban clean" environments, disconnected from microbe-rich nature.

The capacity to maintain immune function, regulate inflammation, and protect against chronic disease depends on regular contact with biodiverse natural environments—yet this is precisely what our most urbanised populations lack.

Why This Matters for Organisations

If acted upon, the current research does in fact offer hope. Even brief nature exposures prove effective, with 10-minute nature breaks alleviating fatigue and increasing energy whilst improving productivity (8). More significantly, regular nature exposure maintains and enriches the microbiome over time.

Employees engaging in frequent physical activity in natural surroundings significantly increased their odds of sustained wellbeing (9). Those with high nature exposure—experiencing natural environments almost daily during their workday—reported the lowest burnout and highest work engagement (10).

This is why at Nature in Mind we've always advocated that nature connection isn't a wellness perk—it's a biological necessity. Our ongoing Taking Root programme, for example, creates repeated exposures allowing beneficial effects to compound. We're not simply helping employees feel better; we're supporting their bodies to function better at the cellular level.

The question for organisations isn't whether to provide nature connection. It's how quickly to begin addressing what's becoming recognised as a genuine public health concern: the microbial impoverishment of urban, office-based populations.

For employee wellbeing for workers in London, this means creating regular opportunities for authentic nature connection.

Interested in bringing evidence-based nature connection to your team? Explore our employee wellbeing experiences in London or 12-month Taking Root Programme.

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References:

1. Haahtela, T., Bousquet, J., & Antó, J.M. (2024). From biodiversity to nature deficiency in human health and disease. Porto Biomedical Journal, 9(1).

2. Vinogradova, E., Mukhanbetzhanov, N., Nurgaziyev, M., Jarmukhanov, Z., Aipova, R., Sailybayeva, A., Bekbossynova, M., Kozhakhmetov, S., & Kushugulova, A. (2024). Impact of urbanization on gut microbiome mosaics across geographic and dietary contexts. mSystems, 9(10).

3. Tasnim, N., Abulizi, N., Pither, J., Hart, M.M., & Gibson, D.L. (2017). Linking the gut microbial ecosystem with the environment: Does gut health depend on where we live? Frontiers in Microbiology, 8, 1935.

4. Roslund, M.I., Puhakka, R., Grönroos, M., et al. (2020). Biodiversity intervention enhances immune regulation and health-associated commensal microbiota among daycare children. Science Advances, 6, eaba2578.

5. Roslund, M.I., Puhakka, R., Nurminen, N., et al. (2021). Long-term biodiversity intervention shapes health-associated commensal microbiota among urban day-care children. Environment International, 157, 106811.

6. Roslund, M.I., Parajuli, A., Hui, N., et al. (2022). A placebo-controlled double-blinded test of the biodiversity hypothesis of immune-mediated diseases: Environmental microbial diversity elicits changes in cytokines and increase in T regulatory cells in young children. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 242, 113900.

7. Soininen, L., Roslund, M.I., Nurminen, N., et al. (2022). Indoor green wall affects health-associated commensal skin microbiota and enhances immune regulation: A randomized trial among urban office workers. Scientific Reports, 12, 6518.

8. Perrins, S.P., Varanasi, U., Seto, E., & Bratman, G.N. (2021). Nature at work: The effects of day-to-day nature contact on workers' stress and psychological well-being. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 66, 127404.

9. Korpela, K., Nummi, T., Lipiäinen, L., De Bloom, J., Sianoja, M., Pasanen, T., & Kinnunen, U. (2017). Nature exposure predicts well-being trajectory groups among employees across two years. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 52, 81-91.

10. Hyvönen, K., Rantala, T., Korhonen, A., Mustikkamäki, N., Takala, M., & Kinnunen, U. (2018). Nature exposure and its effects on immune system functioning: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 754.