There’s Proof That Watching Planet Earth Is Good For Your Mental Health

You can even get a personalised video to help cheer you up

There's Proof That Watching Planet Earth Is Good For Your Mental Health

by Chloe Gray |
Published on

How many times did you cry during Planet Earth II? At least once, when the fairy tern sat on her incubating egg not knowing it would never hatch. Twice out of dread for the giraffe who was being chased by lions. And again when you thought the snakes were going to get that iguana. The fear, the tension, the anxiety.

But, after breathing through the stress of said animal tragedies, it seems watching documentaries about nature actually make us happier. And we only need to watch the video of the swimming sloth to agree.

This is all according to a study by BBC Earth and The University of California, which says watching natural history shows increases feelings of awe, contentedness, joy, amusement and curiosity, whilst also reducing feelings of tiredness, anger and stress.

The study also says that watching David Attenborough’s explorations improves our mood in the same way that going outside ourselves does. So you don’t even need to leave your sofa, stop eating chocolate biscuits or put on a coat in order to get that fresh air feeling. Is there anything Attenborough can’t do for us?

And now the BBC have gone just one step further, by collating Attenborough’s happiest hits (think a fox having a stretch, a polar bear’s bath time and an observant meerkat) into one personalised video all for you, taking into account whether you like cuddly or strange animals, and even if you're a veggie. It happens during a chat on Facebook Messenger with Happybot, and if you are in need of a 48-second post-meeting pick me up, then I would recommend.

Or, better yet, if you’re in need of major mood assistance then swap the foest run for a film filled with wildlife. It’s basically the same thing.

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**Follow Chloe on Twitter @chlogray_

This article originally appeared on The Debrief.

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