When we interrogate the state of our mental health as adults, we often do it from the perspective of ‘what the hell happened?’

That is, what went wrong?

This is probably because very few of us look in the mirror and wonder where we attained our resilience beyond the broad claim of ‘a pretty happy childhood’.

The good times that counted

For many people, some of the happiest memories from childhood were those days spent at the beach, or fishing on a river. The family holidays where the family was at its most relaxed.

And when meeting people who grew up on the beach or a lake – or even on a farm – it’s common that memories of childhood happiness are tied to those places, where they could roam freely, and soak up the mixed beauties of nature.

On that basis, it’s a stretch to wonder if an abundance of such memories has a positive impact on one’s mental health in adulthood.

The University of Exeter has investigated this idea in people from 18 countries, including Australia,

The researchers concluded that “adults with better mental health are more likely to report having spent time playing in and around coastal and inland waters, such as rivers and lakes (also known collectively as blue spaces) as children”.

The finding was replicated in each of the countries studied.

Every kid needs a taste of the great outdoors

When children have access to even a small version of the great outdoors, be it a park or nature reserve, their health, especially mental health, gets a boost.

As we’ve previously reported, there are studies showing that spending time in green spaces reduces our risk of stroke, lowers the risk of mental disorders in young people, including body image issues, and may be protective against dementia.

Green spaces have been found to be protective against psychiatric disorders. Photo: Getty

What about blue spaces?

There’s a lot of research on green spaces and how it impacts on wellbeing.

But, as the researchers from the University of Exeter point out, “we know far less about the benefits of blue spaces, or the role childhood contact has in these relationships in later life”.

Hence, their new paper – based on data from the BlueHealth International Survey (BIS), a cross-sectional survey co-ordinated by the University of Exeter’s European Centre for Environment and Human Health.

The analysis took in 15,000 people from 14 European Countries and four other non-European countries/regions: Hong Kong, Canada, Australia and California

The beach is a great place for children to build independence and confidence. Photo: Getty

Respondents were asked to recall their blue space experiences between the ages of 0-16 years.

These included how local these blue spaces: were they close by to where the participant lived as a child, or were they some distance away?

How often did they visit these spaces.

And, most interesting, how comfortable were their parents or guardians with them playing in these settings?

They were also asked about “more recent contact with green and blue spaces over the last four weeks, and mental health over the last two weeks”.

In other words, the state of a participant’s mental health was based on how they’d been feeling of late, rather than a clinical evaluation.

 What the authors say

Valeria Vitale, lead author and PhD Candidate at Sapienza University of Rome, said:

“Our findings suggest that building familiarity and confidence in and around blue spaces during childhood may stimulate an inherent joy of nature and encourage people to seek out recreational nature experiences, with beneficial consequences for adult mental health.”

Dr Leanne Martin, co-author and a postdoctoral research associate at Exeter’s European Centre for Environment and Human Health, said:

“Water settings can be dangerous for children, and parents are right to be cautious. This research suggests though that supporting children to feel comfortable in these settings and developing skills such as swimming at an early age can have previously unrecognised life-long benefits.”

This is probably the most significant finding in the study. The main point is, teach your children to swim, and give them practical guidance on how to stay safe at the beach or on the river, which can be tricky.

On that basis, if young beach-goers and water rats do grow up with greater resilience – a more than reasonable suggestion, if not a conclusion in this study – it’s because they enjoyed their parents’ confidence.

The study raises questions about outdoorsy are today’s children? What are their opportunities?

Dr Mathew White, Co-author and Senior Scientist at the University of Vienna, said:

“The current study is adding to our growing awareness of the need for urban planners and local bodies responsible for managing our green and blue spaces to provide safe, accessible access to natural settings for the healthy mental and physical development of our children.”