Author(s): Ayaka Shioda; Yasuo Nihei
Linked Author(s):
Keywords: Salivary amylase activity; Waterfront; Healing effect; Sound environment; Thermal environment
Abstract: Being near a waterfront has been shown to reduce psychological stress in humans. Such healing effects are conventionally evaluated by questionnaire survey. The use of an accurate biological indicator of stress reduction would provide quantitative results. Furthermore, the relationships between waterfront healing and various factors have not been quantified sufficiently. To quantitatively evaluate the healing effects of rivers and coastlines and the associated factors, we measured psychological stress in human participants and the sound and thermal environments at six waterfront sites and six nearby urban sites. Salivary alpha-amylase activity, a commonly used stress marker, was used as a measure of psychological stress. The salivary amylase activity levels measured at several of the waterfront sites were significantly lower than those at the corresponding urban sites, and the healing effects at the waterfront sites were closely related to the sound and thermal environments.
Year: 2013