Traditional Korean Medicine-Based Forest Therapy Programs Providing Electrophysiological Benefits for Elderly Individuals.
Jiyune Yi, Boncho Ku, Seul Gee Kim, Taegyu Khil, Youngsuwn Lim, Minja Shin, Sookja Jeon, Jingun Kim, Byunghoon Kang, Jongyeon Shin, Kahye Kim, Ah Young Jeong, Jeong Hwan Park, Jungmi Choi, Wonseok Cha, Changseob Shin, Wonsop Shin, Jaeuk U Kim
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health November 6, 2019 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph16224325 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Controlled intervention study with analysis of covariance Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 88 |
| Population | Adults aged 65 years or older, categorized by Sasang constitutional type (SC1, SC2, SC3) |
| Interventions | Guided-breathing meditation program (BP) Walking program (WP) |
| Duration | 11 sessions over 11 weeks |
| Measures | Electroencephalogram (EEG), heart rate variability (HRV), bioimpedance |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Humans Dementia Breathing exercises Heart rate Aged Female Medicine, korean traditional Electrophysiological phenomena Republic of korea Forests Electrophysiology EEG Cognitive impairment Hrv Bioimpedance Forest therapy Sasang constitutional medicine Walking program Breathing program |
| Key points | The authors report that both the guided-breathing meditation and walking forest therapy programs produced health benefits in older adults, but of different kinds: the breathing program benefited neural activity and the walking program benefited parasympathetic nervous activity, with both improving bioimpedance. Effects depended on Sasang constitutional type, with SC1 and SC2 participants gaining neural-activity benefits from breathing and walking respectively, and SC3 participants gaining parasympathetic benefits from walking. |
Abstract
We aimed to develop forest therapy programs (FTPs) to prevent dementia and related health problems in the elderly population, with the assumption that health benefits are FTP-type specific and depend on the participant's psychophysiological traits. For this purpose, we developed two distinct FTPs, namely, a guided-breathing meditation program (BP) and a walking program (WP); we adopted the approach of Sasang constitutional (SC) medicine, which categorizes individuals into one of three SC types (SC1, SC2, or SC3) for medical care. The FTPs ran 11 sessions over 11 weeks. We recruited 29/31/28 participants who were 65 years of age or older for the BP/WP/control groups, respectively; obtained electrophysiological measurements via electroencephalogram (EEG), heart rate variability (HRV), and bioimpedance; and analyzed the intervention effects with analysis of covariance. Compared with the control, the BP and WP resulted in benefits for neural activity and parasympathetic nervous activity (PNA), respectively, and both FTPs yielded distinct beneficial effects on bioimpedance. Constitution-specific effects were also present. The SC1- and SC2-type participants gained positive effects in neural activity from the BP and WP, respectively. The SC3-type participants showed improvements in PNA from the WP. In conclusion, for older individuals, both programs conferred health benefits that would help prevent dementia, and the benefits were program-specific and constitution-specific.