Overview

Nature has long been associated with better health, but what does the science actually show? 

In this webinar, Dr. Ana Smith reviews the emerging evidence linking exposure to natural environments with improved mental and physical health, including findings from epidemiologic studies, randomized trials, and neuroimaging research. Participants will explore the biological mechanisms through which nature may influence stress regulation, immune function, inflammation, and brain activity, while also examining practical strategies for incorporating nature-based interventions into everyday life and clinical practice—even when access to the outdoors is limited.

Instructor

Ana Smith, MD

Ana Ivkovic MD is a psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital and assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Her clinical interests center on psychiatric disorders in patients with medical illness and the role of nutrition and other lifestyle variables on brain health. She has authored multiple book chapters and articles related to mental health and is the co-author of The Science of Stress (University of Chicago Press, 2016) where she outlines the role of nutrition on brain health and the impact of stress on women’s mental health. She has studied with the Institute for Functional Medicine and the School of Applied Functional Medicine. As a clinician, Ana has seen firsthand the lifesaving potential of psychiatric medications and fully appreciates medications are frequently an important part of one’s recovery. However, she is also keenly aware of the limitations of this approach, which can far-too-often feel like an uphill battle when key upstream, multifactorial contributors to mood and anxiety symptoms are not addressed.