Forests Reduce Health Risks, New Global Report Confirms

Forests, trees and green spaces provide numerous goods and services, including medicines, nutritious foods, and other non-wood forest products that contribute to human health. Medicinal plants provide primary healthcare to 70% of the world's population. Forests, trees and green spaces provide numerous goods and services, including medicines, nutritious foods, and other non-wood forest products that contribute to human health. Medicinal plants provide primary healthcare to 70% of the world's...

Forests, trees and green spaces provide numerous goods and services, including medicines, nutritious foods, and other non-wood forest products that contribute to human health. Medicinal plants provide primary healthcare to 70% of the world's population.

The assessment finds that disturbed relationships between forests and people, poor forest conservation and management or wrong tree species choices in areas where people live can have an adverse impact on people.

A solution to the malaria epidemic, for example, is not to remove the forest and wetland habitats of the mosquitoes transmitting the disease - deforestation can actually increase the malaria risk - but to invest in sustainable forest management and urbanization processes that avoid loss of natural habitats.

Land-use change is estimated to have caused the emergence of more than 30% of new diseases since 1960. It is crucial to improve the understanding of the role of nature in providing benefits to humans, and consequently, the role that ongoing nature destruction is playing in increasing health threats.

"The report suggests that decision-makers in forest, health and related domains should adopt more integrative perspectives for addressing forest-human health relations. By linking forest and human health policies and strategies, new and innovative solutions for health and forest challenges can be identified", says Chair of the GFEP on Forests and Human Health, Dr. Cecil Konijnendijk, University of British Columbia, Canada.

Download the report Forests and Trees for Human Health (free)

PRESS CONTACT: Melanie Marten, The Coup Public Relations, Telephone: +49 1707308126, [email protected], www.thecoup.de

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