Publisher's Synopsis
Plants are used to help keep humans in good health since the dawn of humanity and were used in different ways depending on their effects on the health. Stress appears to be increasingly present in our modern and demanding industrialized society. Every aspect of our bodies and brains can be virtually influenced by stress induced by living in an urban environment. Horticultural therapy comprehends interventions mediated by nature-oriented views and spaces such as gardens and everything associated with them, the plants and material related to them, garden tools and garden occupations performed among disabled people for healing and for restoring or improving health and well-being or for rehabilitation or simply for general benefit. Early human civilizations lived in natural settings, demonstrating that we can adapt to nature. Congruent with this viewpoint, individuals living in modern societies who are experiencing stress have become interested in several types of natural therapy. For example, psychological evaluations of the effects of horticultural therapy on the elderly have been previously reported. This volume contains real world studies that give a broad historic survey and a systematic description of horticultural therapy with emphasis on its use in rehabilitation. Horticulture therapy mediates emotional, cognitive and/or sensory motor functional improvement, increased social participation, health, and well-being and life satisfaction. However, the effectiveness, especially of the interacting and acting forms, needs investigation. A study contained in this volume reports on the phytochemical and antinutritional properties of F. sycomorus plant. The antimicrobial and toxicological properties of the plant were also evaluated. Furthermore, a study is aimed to clarify the physiological effects of visual stimulation using forest imagery on activity of the brain and autonomic nervous system. More than half of the global population currently lives in urban environments, and 66% of individuals are expected to live in urban areas by the year 2050. Although urbanization has led to improvements in many areas such as housing, employment, education, equality, quality of living environment, social support, and health services, changes occurring over a very short period have been very drastic from an evolutionary perspective. As a result of such stressful situations in modern society, effective methods for coping with stress and for relaxation are receiving increasing attention. The purpose of this volume is to integrate and synthesize the literature from the fields of Horticulture Therapy (HT) that demonstrates outcomes for vulnerable groups, including those with learning difficulties and mental health problems.
