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Environmental neuroscience unravels the pathway from the physical environment to mental health

Nature Mental Health volume 2, pages 263–269 (2024)Cite this article

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Abstract

Genes, as well as the environment, are known to affect mental health. However, the effects of the physical environment on mental health are not well understood. The emerging field of environmental neuroscience aims to fill this gap. Here we present an outline of different areas of research that need to be undertaken in this field. These range from identification of the ‘active ingredients’ of the physical environment (for example, terpenes, air pollutants and low-level visual features), the investigation of which human senses are most strongly involved in processing those active ingredients, and a description of the brain-based mechanisms. The long-term goal and potential application of this new research field is to build knowledge for evidence-based urban and landscape planning to foster salutogenic environments that prevent and alleviate mental health problems. The identification of active ingredients may help to preserve our environment in the face of disturbances such as urbanization and climate change.

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Fig. 1: Illustration of the black box between the physical environment and mental health as an outcome.

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Acknowledgements

S.K. was funded by the Max Planck Society and the European Union (ERC-2022-CoG-BrainScape-101086188). Views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Council Executive Agency (ERCEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

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  1. Lise Meitner Group for Environmental Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany

    Simone Kühn

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany

    Simone Kühn & Jürgen Gallinat

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  2. Jürgen Gallinat
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S.K. conceived and wrote the first draft. J.G. revised this draft.

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Correspondence to Simone Kühn.

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Nature Mental Health thanks Agnieszka Olszewska-Guizzo and the other, anonymous, reviewers for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Kühn, S., Gallinat, J. Environmental neuroscience unravels the pathway from the physical environment to mental health. Nat. Mental Health 2, 263–269 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44220-023-00137-6

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