A radical new examination of the transition into motherhood and how it affects the mind, brain and body Delicately observed and rigorously researched, Losing Eden is an enthralling journey through this new research, exploring how and why connecting with the living world can so drastically affect our health. Travelling from forest schools in East London to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault via primeval woodlands, Californian laboratories and ecotherapists' couches, Jones takes us to the cutting edge of human biology, neuroscience and psychology, and discovers new ways of understanding our increasingly dysfunctional relationship with the earth.

I realise the irony that I am sitting in front of a laptop screen typing this review about a book that advocates us getting out and about in the natural world. I spend most of the day in an office and factory and drive to and from there. But I do try to get out and about whenever I have the opportunity either by walking down to the woods or the river nearby. It may not be much some days but it is enough Today many of us live indoor lives, disconnected from the natural world as never before. And yet nature remains deeply ingrTo stimulate real, lasting change, we must amend how we design cities, enact legislation, and consider our health. In Losing Eden, Jones is both thoughtful and probing. She speaks to a great deal of different people working across the field, as well as attending specific congresses, and travelling to places of interest, such as the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. Located within the Arctic Circle, the Global Seed Vault is a ‘man-made deep-freeze containing around 900,000 seed samples to protect agricultural biodiversity in the case of climate breakdown, nuclear war and natural disasters.’ Restored Attention: a state of mind explained by Attention Restoration Theory, or ART, developed in 1980 by University of Michigan psychology professors Rachel and Stephen Kaplan. According to ART, Directed Attention focused on one thing leads to Directed Attention Fatigue, causing stress, irritability, and difficulty focusing. Meanwhile, Effortless Attention can be achieved in nature, watching birds fly or leaves rustling – leading to Restored Attention through feelings like “soft fascination.” Research helped her to understand what was behind that sense of well-being. Exposure to the soil bacterium Mycobacterium vaccae leads to significantly reduced stress and inflammation, while smelling fresh rain and seeing fractals in nature activate portions of the brain involved in relaxation. The Amish, exposed to a diversity of microbes through their small-scale farming, have stronger immune systems and a lower incidence of mental illness. Thus, working the land or just pottering around in a garden can be not just fun but fortifying. Losing Eden: Why Our Minds Need the Wild by Lucy Jones attempts to show us the science behind intuitive knowledge that being in nature is good for us.

A fascinating look at why human beings have a powerful mental, spiritual, and physical need for the natural world—and the cutting-edge scientific evidence that proves nature is nurture. I want to lend this to everyone I know it was just fantastic. Took such a brilliant all-round view at what constitutes an individual’s wellbeing and all the different ways nature can impact it. While I wholeheartedly agree with the author's message and viewpoints regarding the essentiality of nature in our lives there are a lot of studies and facts quoted, which meant the book ended up feeling a bit dry for this reader. This might've worked better as a shorter essay, as I found it a bit repetitive at times. Not bad, per se, just not quite engaging enough. Today many of us live indoor lives, disconnected from the natural world as never before. And yet nature remains deeply ingrained in our language, culture and consciousness. For centuries, we have acted on an intuitive sense that we need communion with the wild to feel well. Now, in the moment of our great migration away from the rest of nature, more and more scientific evidence is emerging to confirm its place at the heart of our psychological wellbeing. So what happens, asks acclaimed journalist Lucy Jones, as we lose our bond with the natural world-might we also be losing part of ourselves?

This is a “hymn to the healing power of nature” and a gem of a non-fiction book. We all know spending time in nature is good for us, but this book explains the science behind why, and it’s not all the reasons you’d presume. A lot of us have found solace in our surroundings since the onset of the pandemic, with its almost universal rules of staying close to home, and limiting exercise. My boyfriend and I had to entirely curb our extensive travelling, and we found such solace in connecting with what was around us. For me, a daily walk in the park, where I could breathe fresh air and see that the natural world was something close to thriving, was a rejuvenating experience. I have always loved nature, and have always been appreciative of it, but since the early spring of 2020, it has meant more to me than ever before. According to Wilson, even if individuals don’t feel an innate connection with nature, our brains are marked by our past evolutionary responses and behavior. Today, researchers are successfully testing Wilson’s biophilia hypothesis through habitat theory: the idea that we mostly live in park-like grasslands with clusters of trees and water because our ancient ancestors sought out such environments to increase their chances of survival. Loodus on ressurss, mida vajame eelkõige elusana. Nii, nagu raamatu tagaküljel sedastatakse, tahan nüüd tõepoolest ringi korraldada nii linnaruumi, haridussüsteemi, tööl käimist kui ka oma elu. Also, one piece of New Zealand legislation has been called a “new dawn in conservation management.” The Te Urewera Act, passed in 2014, granted legal rights to an ancient forest of the same name that is sacred to the Tūhoe people, a tribe of the Māori.