Green space exposure → Depression
Higher green space exposure decreases depression.
People with access to a garden had lower odds of depression: a pooled odds ratio of 0.71 in a meta-analysis of studies from the pandemic years.
Meta-analysis · Low · N=113
The two move together in observational data. Nobody has yet tested whether one causes the other.
Mechanism
The meta-analysis does not test why.
Caveats
The result is about access to a garden, not green space in general, and it pools a small number of estimates. It comes from the pandemic years, when many people were at home. This edge records that the two move together, not that gardens lower depression.
Effect
Odds ratio 0.71 (95% CI 0.61 to 0.82). Pooled odds ratio of 0.71 for depression with access to gardens.
Nodes
Cite this page
What Causes What. “Green space exposure → Depression.” https://whatcauseswhat.org/edges/e-green-space-depression (atlas updated 2026-10-18).
Papers
- Nature exposure and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A Navigation Guide systematic review with meta-analysis.
MM Patwary, M Bardhan, AS Disha, AM Dzhambov, C Parkinson, MHEM Browning, SM Labib, LR Larson · 2024 · Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987)
People during the COVID-19 pandemic · Odds ratio 0.71 (95% CI 0.61 to 0.82)