The Impact of Forest Therapy Programs on Stress Reduction: A Systematic Review

Abstract

This systematic review aims to examine key findings of previous studies in order to explore how forest therapy programs impact stress reduction on physiological and psychological levels. It was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). Quantitative studies that compared forest therapy program interventions with urban exposure were searched in February 2023 in six databases: CINAHL, EMBASE, Medline, PsycINfo, PubMed, and Web of Science (core collection). This review included 17 relevant articles selected from a total of 495 individual studies, in accordance with the set inclusion and exclusion criteria. The results of this review indicated that forest therapy programs were effective at relieving stress, particularly on a psychological level. Forest therapy programs could be used as a part of stress reduction projects. However, results regarding physiological effects have yet to be confirmed, and in the future, more in-depth and well-designed research will be required.