A new study has found that parks, green spaces and calming environments located in cities can help to temporarily improve the mental health of the older generation by triggering therapeutic changes in mood.

The news comes after researchers from the University of York’s Stockholm Institute studied the brain activity of people from different age groups, in a bid to better understand how people of certain ages react to different urban environments.

Using brain scans, self-reported measures and a series of interviews, researchers found that volunteers aged 65 and above typically experienced positive changes in their levels of excitement and engagement when surrounded by parks and greenery.

Dr Chris Neale, of the University of York’s Stockholm Environment Institute, said: “Urban green space has a role to play in contributing to a supportive city environment for older people through mediating the stress induced by built up settings.

“[Our study] found [that] older participants experienced beneficial effects of green space whilst walking between busy built urban environments and urban green space environments.

“There are concerns about mental well-being as the global population becomes older and more urbanised,” he added.

“This work is the first to be published in a series of papers understanding the impact of green and urban spaces on brain activity in older adults”.