The Nature Cure Why some doctors are writing prescriptions for time outdoors

The Growing Field of Ecotherapy - The Atlantic:

But other research, conducted with actual humans, does support the idea that spending time in nature makes people healthier. Children with ADHD who regularly play in parks have been found to have milder symptoms than those who spend more time indoors, for example, and therapeutic-camping programs have been found to decrease relapse rates in substance addicts. Such findings generally have more to do with mood and behavior than basic biology—but mood and behavior are intimately tied to physical well-being. Social connection, for instance, is one of the most important factors in human health. And communal green spaces foster that.

New 3 mile "Rail With Trail" from Chapman Hwy. to Ijams

New trail to help revitalize South Knoxville:

The path, named the G&O Trail for the railway, is set to extend from the old Kern's Bakery Building on Chapman Highway - just across the Henley Bridge from downtown Knoxville - to Ijams Nature Center's Meads Quarry, connecting it to the more than 40 miles of trails there in Knoxville's Urban Wilderness.

The three-mile trail will wind through parts of South Knoxville that stand to benefit.

"It's definitely a corridor that has been vacant and underdeveloped and under-utilized," she said. "What we're going to see is neighborhoods connected, businesses connected, businesses that incubate along the rail line because people will love to sit on a patio and bike from spot to spot."