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Associations of the natural and built environment with mental health and wellbeing during COVID-19: Irish perspectives from the GreenCOVID study

DOI:10.1016/S2214-109X(21)00128-5
Authors:
Viveka Guzman at Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
Viveka Guzman
Marco Garrido-Cumbrera at Universidad de Sevilla
Marco Garrido-Cumbrera
Olta Braçe at Universidad de Sevilla
Olta Braçe
Denise Hewlett at The University of Winchester
Denise Hewlett
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Abstract

Background In several countries public health efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic have included movement restrictions that confine residents to their home or to reduced catchment areas. Household characteristics and assets of nearby spaces may be particularly relevant to support wellbeing and mental health in this context. The aim of this study was to explore wellbeing and mental health associations with factors of the immediate natural and built environment among adults in Ireland during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods We did cross-sectional analyses using Irish data from the GreenCOVID study. Participants were recruited online between June and July, 2020, with a convenience sampling approach. All respondents who provided informed consent and data on variables of interest were included in analysis. Wellbeing was assessed with the WHO-5 Wellbeing Index, and mental health with the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale. Means and SD were used to describe the perceived importance of views to green and blue spaces and physical access to outdoor spaces (range 0–10). We used χ² tests and multiple linear regression models to explore associations of wellbeing and mental health with household type, household problems, number of bedrooms, number of co-habitants, spaces enabling physical access to the outdoors, quality of views and views to green spaces from home. Regression models were controlled by age, gender, city versus non-city household location, marital status, and self-perceived health. Findings We included data from 243 participants; mean age was 43 years (SD 16) and most participants were women (n=174 [72%]). Participants perceived that the outdoors helped them cope with restriction measures to a high extent (mean score 8·54 [SD 1·79]; 43% of respondents reported the maximum score), and highly valued views to blue (7·82 [2·45]) and green spaces (8·84 [1·76]). Household problems were significantly associated with lower wellbeing scores (beta=–9·78 [95% CI −15·675 to −3·885]) and increased likelihood of mental disorders (0·583 [0·284 to 0·889]). Interpretation Our findings show high perceived benefits of views to green and blue spaces and access to the outdoors from home during the first wave of COVID-19. Moreover, those living in a household with problems had higher likelihood of poor mental health outcomes. This study highlights the importance of natural and built environment in helping people cope with the negative effects of the restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Funding Health Research Board (HRB), grant no. SPHeRE-2019-1.
Available via license: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
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Abstracts
20
www.thelancet.com/lancetgh
Associations of the natural and built environment with
mental health and wellbeing during COVID-19:
Irish perspectives from the GreenCOVID study
Viveka Guzman, Marco Garrido-Cumbrera, Olta Braçe, Denise Hewlett, Ronan Foley
Abstract
Background In several countries public health eorts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic have included movement
restrictions that confine residents to their home or to reduced catchment areas. Household characteristics and assets
of nearby spaces may be particularly relevant to support wellbeing and mental health in this context. The aim of this
study was to explore wellbeing and mental health associations with factors of the immediate natural and built
environment among adults in Ireland during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods We did cross-sectional analyses using Irish data from the GreenCOVID study. Participants were recruited
online between June and July, 2020, with a convenience sampling approach. All respondents who provided informed
consent and data on variables of interest were included in analysis. Wellbeing was assessed with the WHO-5 Wellbeing
Index, and mental health with the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale. Means and SD were used to describe the
perceived importance of views to green and blue spaces and physical access to outdoor spaces (range 0–10). We used
χ2 tests and multiple linear regression models to explore associations of wellbeing and mental health with household
type, household problems, number of bedrooms, number of co-habitants, spaces enabling physical access to the
outdoors, quality of views and views to green spaces from home. Regression models were controlled by age, gender,
city versus non-city household location, marital status, and self-perceived health.
Findings We included data from 243 participants; mean age was 43 years (SD 16) and most participants were women
(n=174 [72%]). Participants perceived that the outdoors helped them cope with restriction measures to a high extent
(mean score 8·54 [SD 1·79]; 43% of respondents reported the maximum score), and highly valued views to blue (7·82
[2·45]) and green spaces (8·84 [1·76]). Household problems were significantly associated with lower wellbeing scores
(beta=–9·78 [95% CI –15·675 to –3·885]) and increased likelihood of mental disorders (0·583 [0·284 to 0·889]).
Interpretation Our findings show high perceived benefits of views to green and blue spaces and access to the outdoors
from home during the first wave of COVID-19. Moreover, those living in a household with problems had higher
likelihood of poor mental health outcomes. This study highlights the importance of natural and built environment in
helping people cope with the negative eects of the restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Funding Health Research Board (HRB), grant no. SPHeRE-2019-1.
Copyright © The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license.
Declaration of interests
We declare no competing interests.
Published Online
March 11, 2021
Royal College of Surgeons in
Ireland, Division of Population
Health, Dublin, Ireland
(V Guzman MD); Health and
Territory Research (HTR),
University of Seville,
Department of Physical
Geography and Regional
Geographic
Analysis, Seville, Spain
(M Garrido-Cumbrera PhD,
O Braçe PhD); University of
Winchester, Faculty of
Business, Law and Digital
Technologies, Winchester,
UK(D Hewlett PhD); Maynooth
University, Department of
Geography, Maynooth, Ireland
(R Foley PhD)
Correspondence to:
Dr Viveka Guzman, Division of
Population Health, Royal College
of Surgeons in Ireland, Beaux
Lane House, Mercer Street Lower,
D02DH60, Dublin, Ireland
vivekaguzman@rcsi.ie
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Effects of housing environments on COVID-19 transmission and mental health revealed by COVID-19 Participant Experience data from the All of Us Research Program in the USA: a case–control study
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