Doctors have called on ministers to plant more trees near homes and schools in a bid to ease pressure on the NHS and improve the country’s health.
The Woodland Trust said GPs are backing their campaign to increase the cover of native trees in Britain and prioritize the environment in the run-up to the general election.
A survey of 255 GPs found that three quarters (74 per cent) thought planting more trees and creating a healthier natural environment for people could help reduce the financial burden on the NHS.
The Woodland Trust said GPs are backing their campaign to increase native tree cover in Britain and prioritize the environment in the run-up to the general election.
And about the same number (77 percent) were in favor of introducing time-out in nature to help with health and mental health issues.
About 94 percent of respondents believed that planting hedges around urban schools to capture pollution was necessary to improve children’s health and tackle conditions such as asthma.
Furthermore, 96 percent said policymakers should make the environment a priority in the run-up to the general election.
Dr. Darren Moorcroft, chief executive of the Woodland Trust, said politicians should listen to the results.
‘A surprising 96 percent of GPs – who are on the frontline of healthcare in this country – want environmental issues to move up the political agenda,’ he said.
“They recognize the potentially life-giving benefits of a cleaner, greener world, which are becoming increasingly important due to the wider impacts of climate change – and want their patients to be able to more easily access those benefits.”
He added: ‘Forests and trees make us healthy and happy.
‘They sequester carbon, combat the effects of climate change, improve our health and wellbeing and reduce pollution and flooding, protecting nature, people and our planet.
‘That’s why we’re asking people to support our climate campaign to plant more trees.’
Dr. David Wrigley, vice-chairman of the British Medical Association’s GP Committee, England, said: ‘Our health and the environment are intertwined in almost every way, and the potential benefits of more green spaces from both a mental and physical wellbeing perspective should be still to be investigated. realized.
“It is important that we ensure that more people have equal access to these spaces and that we do everything we can to protect the future of our planet and its people.”