June through August 2016: Please join the Friends of Dane County Parks as we will be conducting a "Healthy Parks Tour" in Dane County parks this summer. The tour will highlight the role Parks can play in promoting and advancing physical and mental health. We want to promote good healthy lifestyles using some of the most beautiful venues in Dane County. The health benefits of Parks like those in the Dane County Park system are many, including:
- research shows that mere contact with the natural world improves physical and psychological health.
- studies show that when people have access to Parks they exercise more.
- medical journals regularly publish articles on the role of parks in enhancing health.
- people commonly use parks in ways that involve physical activity; walking is the most common with bicycling and jogging important as well.
- some of the specific health benefits of walking include managing weight, controlling BP, decreasing heart attack risk, strengthening bones and joints, lowering stress levels and preventing depression.
- In an era where health costs have become the biggest single expenditure in the US, the health contribution of parks is a bargain.
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