When Esther Sternberg's father was in a concentration camp in Transnistria, now Moldova, during World War II, his only source of comfort was his favorite psalm, Psalm 23. The biblical verses describe resting in green pastures, being led to still waters and restoring the soul.

People always reference nature when asked what their favorite visual scene is, according to Sternberg, research director at the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine in Tucson, Arizona.

Glimmers of hope that help people through hardship don't have to be big or even tangible. This also applies to the stress many people are feeling during the COVID-19 pandemic. Coronavirus lockdowns, which have kept people at home for most of the year, have highlighted why it is important to have spaces that promote mental health.

In Europe, 46% of people live in apartments, according to the European Union's statistical office. These spaces feel more crowded when schools close and workplaces tell their employees to work from home. In cities where most people in the world live many people do not even have access to a garden.

Spending time in nature boosts the immune system

Stressful situations send our bodies into "fight or flight" mode. This allows us to deal with a threat immediately. But when someone is stressed for a long time like during a pandemic it can harm the immune system.

"When we think about stress in general, it's important to acknowledge that there's a lot of individual differences," said Jean-Philippe Gouin, a clinical psychologist and associate professor at Concordia University in Canada. "So one situation might be stressful for someone, but not very stressful for someone else."

Scientists have long known that spending time in nature can lower people's stress levels. Studies have also shown that looking at greenery or even pictures of it relieves stress. In a Danish study published in 2015, students who were shown photos of green urban spaces after solving hard math equations experienced less stress than those who looked at photos of built urban spaces.

People can create spaces that promote mental health by changing environmental factors like the levels of noise, light, temperature, humidity and adding a bit of nature.

Sternberg recommends that employees working from home place their desk by a window with a view. If that's not possible, they can add plants and pictures of nature scenes.

"Everybody has a different kind of feeling [about] what their sanctuary would be," said Sternberg. "But I do think it's possible to create your little sanctuary for yourself intentionally."

The 19th-century British textile designer and social activist William Morris said: "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or beautiful."

For some, it can be hard to identify good design, but easier to notice when design is bad, said Phoebe Oldrey, founder of UK-based interior design firm Smartstyle Interiors. This is an example of "negativity bias," the idea that negative things affect us more than positive things, even when they are of equal intensity.

"You probably don't realize you feel better, or that you're healthier, or that your sleep's better because of the way your environment's put together, but it's there," Oldrey told DW. "You would notice if you were having a terrible night's sleep, if you were tripping over your coffee table every single day we always take note of the bad."

However, reaching a balance between practicality and beauty is important for our mental health,as studies have shown that clutter creates stress. A UCLA study published in 2010 found that for some women, clutter produced cortisol patterns similar to those seen in people with post-traumatic stress disorder.

"What our home looks like is really important to us," said Oldrey. "It's a representation of who we are, and looking at beautiful things brings us joy, and we sometimes get shy to say that because it sounds so frivolous."

When the pandemic started, Sternberg's daughter started an online design course. One of the students who was designing a chair began to cry and question the worth of what she was studying in the face of the pandemic.

"My daughter said: 'If you're working from home, your chair could be the most important thing in your life,'" said Sternberg.

For those in the darker months of their year, taking on a winter mindset might be another healthy approach. Scandinavian designs that reflect this idea have grown popular in recent years. The functional approach utilizes natural materials, simple lines and muted colors, and features cozy sofas topped with chunky throw rugs. Maximizing sunlight is crucial in countries like Denmark, Sweden and Norway, which have long dark winters.

Scandinavian designs: natural materials, simple lines and muted colors

"One of the main features that Scandinavian architects are interested in, in terms of improving the quality of living, is the daylight and how you articulate daylight through architecture," Danish architecture historian Martin Soberg told DW.

Our circadian rhythm is finely tuned to natural light. We rise with the sun and sleep as it travels across the other side of the world. Certain types of artificial light hurt our body clock, which is why scientists say we should avoid the blue light that comes from our laptops and smartphones at night.

To maximize sleep, we should aim to get sunlight from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., Sternberg said. As tempting as it is to stay in bed when working from home, she recommends trying to keep a regular sleep pattern.

Tromso, Norway - where the sun doesn't rise for two months in winter

Some people find the change in season so disruptive that they experience a type of depression called seasonal affective disorder, which often hits people at the end of autumn and lasts through winter.

As a Fulbright scholar in Tromso, Norway where the sun doesn't rise for two months in winter psychologist Kari Leibowitz observed how a small shift in mindset can help people make the most of winter.

While many people see winter as a dreary season full of barriers to fun, Leibowitz found that the people in Tromsosaw winter as a special time of year full of opportunity. Her observations suggested that it's easier to have a positive winter mindset when those around you also do.

Leibowitz's research showed that having a positive attitude towards winter was associated with better well-being during winter, but noted that further research needs to be done before claiming there is a causal link between the two.

To make winter feel special, it can help to embrace the Danish concept of "hygge," which promotes coziness and connectedness with others. Writing in TheNew York Times, Leibowitz also suggested making a list of everything you appreciate about winter and then trying to consciously focus on these things throughout the cold months.

These are the coronavirus rules as we know them: Keep a distance of 1.5 to 2 meters (5 to 6 feet) from others, observe good hygiene and wear a mask. But this does not do justice to the complex reality of how aerosols spread, researchers from Oxford and London (UK) and Cambridge MA (US) have written in an analysis published in the British Medical Journal in late August.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has tried to show schoolchildren how it should be done. But what does his gesture mean exactly? Do his fingertips have to be 1.5 meters away from the fingertips of another person? That would be a reasonable interpretation of the regulations. But two arm lengths alone measure 1.5 meters, so distances of 4.5 meters or more could easily result.

The Icelandic Association of Sheep Breeders has established its own rules: Two sheep lengths are appropriate to avoid infection. One may wonder if face masks are also supposed to be knitted from real sheep's wool. This young shepherd in Senegal may be trying to find out how long a sheep is by pulling its hind leg. The Icelanders already know exactly 1 meter.

Of course, this could also work. The standard length of a dog leash corresponds pretty exactly to the current coronavirus rules. Could it be a coincidence that a six-foot leash is usually prescribed for places where leashes are compulsory?

The authors led by Lydia Bourouiba, an expert in fluid dynamics and disease transmission at MIT, writes that the rule is outdated. Two meters was the distance recommended by the German physician C. Flgge in 1897. Visible droplets that he had caught within this distance were still contagious. A 1948 study showed that 90% of streptococci coughed out in droplets flew no further than 1.7 meters.

The 1948 study was published in the American Medical Journal. It also showed that 10% of streptococci flew much further: up to 2.9 meters. If that were the case, perhaps the people on this lawn on the banks of the Rhine in Dusseldorf would be safe if every other circle remained free. But wait a minute we are not dealing with streptococci (bacteria) here, but with viruses.

Viruses are much smaller than bacteria, so they can float around for hours and spread better in the air. This is why the researchers recommend that the distance between people should not be the only safety criterion but that other factors should be considered, too: How well a room is ventilated, whether people are wearing masks, and whether they are silent, speaking softly or singing and shouting.

Numerous studies have also shown that coughing can propel veritable parcels of viruses up to 8 meters through the air. Speaking or singing loudly also spread a lot of aerosols and droplets about the room. If, however, people only speak quietly, as in a library, and sit in the fresh air, safe distances can be smaller again.

The duration of a stay in a contaminated room and how many people are in that room are also decisive factors when assessing the risk of infection. The researchers have used those factors to develop a traffic light model. The clear result: In rooms with a high occupancy, you should generally stay only for a short time, make sure they are well aired, wear a mask and speak quietly.

Even very brief contact can be enough to transmit SARS-CoV-2. The US Center for Disease Control (CDC) had to tighten its rules on October 21, after a prison guard caught SARS-CoV-2 from prisoners with whom he had only had contact with for a few minutes at a time. Now, "close contact" is defined as being within 2 metres of an infected person for at least 15 minutes cumulatively within 24 hours.

Here, however, the traffic light of the UK-US research team would show green. Outside, people can be safe for long periods of time even without a mask, provided there are few people around, everything is well ventilated and no one talks much. But even so, will the distance between deck chairs being measured here be enough?

Author: Fabian Schmidt

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Promoting health and well-being during the coronavirus pandemic - Deutsche Welle