{"id":24777,"date":"2023-04-06T12:55:57","date_gmt":"2023-04-06T10:55:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=24777"},"modified":"2023-04-06T12:55:57","modified_gmt":"2023-04-06T10:55:57","slug":"doctor-nature","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/2023\/04\/06\/doctor-nature\/","title":{"rendered":"Doctor nature"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

TV doctor Amir Khan has recently become president of the RSPB, but what does the role entail? Annabel <\/strong>Ross <\/strong>meets him to find out \u2013 and discovers how closely our health is related to time spent in nature <\/p>\n\n

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As well as publishing his best-selling book The Doctor Will See You Now<\/em>, NHS GP and president of the RSPB Amir Khan is vice president of The Wildlife Trusts, and is a regular on TV shows Lorraine <\/em>and Good Morning Britain<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

It\u2019s easy to see why the RSPB chose Dr Amir Khan as their new president. He is so enthusiastic about being out in nature, and if he can manage it on a regular basis then so can we \u2013 he has more commitments than anyone I\u2019ve ever met. Dr Khan is first and foremost a full-time GP, but also manages to be a regular guest on two daytime television programmes, he has published a book, he lectures at Leeds and Bradford universities and is vice-president of the Wildlife Trusts, as well as various other roles in supporting British wildlife. <\/p>\n\n

It\u2019s clear that Khan is passionate about the health benefits of being out in nature and wants everyone to be able to experience it, whether you live in the inner city or the countryside. We recently met for a walk around Golden Acre Park, not far from his home in Leeds. <\/p>\n\n

Where did your love of nature come from? <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

\u201cIt came from my dad, who\u2019s not with us anymore. He was really interested in wildlife. We didn\u2019t have a garden growing up, we grew up in the centre of Bradford. He was a bus driver, so he worked full time as well. But when he came home, the only television programmes he watched were nature documentaries. And that kind of spurred me on to watch them as well. Then he got poorly when I was quite young. We used to, when he was well enough, go out to parks like this and look at nature. But when he wasn\u2019t well enough, I would go out and then tell him about what I\u2019d seen. And that connection was really nice \u2013 it was really special. When he passed away, it was something I liked to continue because it reminded me of him and it still does.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

\u201cBut actually, when going into medicine and learning about the science of the benefits of spending time in nature, that kind of galvanised all of that.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

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\u201cBeing in natural light affects our circadian rhythm… and that in itself will help us sleep better\u201d <\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
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Are you saying that when you were learning medicine, you also learned about the importance of being outside in nature for our health? Was that on the curriculum?<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not on the curriculum, no, but what I knew was, from my own experience, I felt better for being outside. So beyond what I was learning at medical school about the conventional kind of medicine that we practice today, which is really important and correct, in my own time I was learning the science around what physiological changes go on inside of us when we spend time in nature, why we feel better for it. <\/p>\n\n

We\u2019re often told that we must get out into nature because it\u2019s really good for us. But what is actually happening to us when we spend time outside?<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

\u201cSo, in evolutionary terms it makes sense: way back when our ancestors were looking for places to settle, being around birdsong suggested that these were safer areas, that there weren\u2019t many predators around because if those kinds of animals can settle there, it\u2019s a safer place for us to settle. But actually, our physiological bodies and things that go on inside of us are tuned into nature as well. Being in natural light outside affects our circadian rhythm, which is our internal body clock, and that in itself will help us sleep. So the more natural light you get through the day, the better tuned into the day and night cycles your body is, and the better sleep you\u2019ll get. <\/span><\/p>\n\n

\u201cWhen we\u2019re outside, one of the hormones in our blood called cortisol \u2013 our stress hormone \u2013 will be lowering because the chemicals that are given off by plants trigger that lowering of our cortisol levels. So that brings our heart rate down, it brings our blood pressure down and we automatically feel calmer. But, also our brain chemicals \u2013 dopamine and serotonin \u2013 go up when we\u2019re in nature, so we start to feel happier, too, and safer. And that is why we like to spend time out here.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

Is just a walk around the block enough to benefit your health and wellbeing?<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

\u201cAny nature is good for you, but what the studies have shown is that spending two hours or more in nature a week is probably what\u2019s going to get you those beneficial effects. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cBut I find that\u2019s a little bit too prescriptive. Anything is better than nothing, and those physiological changes will take place. You just have to go out there and look at nature and immerse yourself in it. And I think that\u2019s the key. It\u2019s not just a case of, we\u2019ll go for a walk and talk \u2013 we need to really immerse ourselves in nature. Listen to the birdsong, be aware of the plants that are growing around you, the leaves on the trees. It\u2019s about being mindful in nature, and that is when you really start to get the health benefits. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cAnd one thing I always say, if I\u2019m going out in nature with my friends, is no phones, absolutely no phones. You\u2019ve got to be present in that moment.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

One of your aims is to get people who are living in city centres better access to nature. How are you trying to achieve that? <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

\u201cThis is really important for me because I know, having grown up in the same area where I work now, I know the challenges faced by inner-city people, particularly in places like Bradford, which is socially deprived. If I say to someone, actually, if you spend time in green spaces, you\u2019ll feel better, they\u2019ll say: \u2018Well, I have to get two buses to get to a green space, and I don\u2019t have the money for that all the time\u2019. So the key is bringing green spaces to them and clearing up some areas within the inner cities, even if it\u2019s just a tiny corner, turning it green and involving the community in that. <\/p>\n\n

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\u201cIf our nature depletes any further, our health will deteriorate… something we just can\u2019t afford\u201d <\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
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\u201cI\u2019ve worked with the RSPB and the Wildlife Trusts in trying to get nature into inner city areas. And that could be just converting grass verges \u2013 which, in some parts of Bradford might be filled with mattresses and old sofas \u2013 moving them, planting some wildflower seeds, and just having a little bit of a walkway for when people come out of their houses who don\u2019t have gardens can have access to some of that green space. And I think that\u2019s what we\u2019ve got to invest more in, green spaces in inner-city areas. When I come to London for work it\u2019s full of lovely little green pockets. But that\u2019s not true for every city, particularly a lot of the northern cities. And that\u2019s what we\u2019ve got to change.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n

What does your role as president of the RSPB entail? <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

\u201cSome of it is advisory, so talking about any policies that are coming out and how they may be adapted to suit everyone. Because I feel like I\u2019m on the ground level and I know what might appeal to my patients and what won\u2019t, for example, and what issues are important to them. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cOf course there\u2019s a lot of campaigning. Particularly now, the RSPB is really passionate about making sure our nature laws remain protected going forward. They\u2019re doing a lot of work on that and that is something I\u2019m really keen to see. Because if our nature depletes any further, our health will deteriorate and that will affect my patients and that\u2019s something we just can\u2019t afford. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cOne of the things I talk a lot about with my work with the RSPB is widening access to nature, and making sure everybody feels included in the nature space. That hasn\u2019t always been the case \u2013 Ican say that as a person from a historically marginalised group of people. My mum, if I take her out, she\u2019s going to go out in her full Asian gear, shalwar kameez \u2013 she\u2019s very visibly proud to be Asian. She\u2019ll get the right walking boots \u2013 well, I have to buy her the right walking boots \u2013 but she has them on. She\u2019s a trailblazer and I\u2019m really proud of that. And it\u2019s for her own good, because she\u2019s getting older now and getting mobile is really important. Hopefully, the two of us together out walking in nature might make someone else feel more comfortable about being out there, too.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

What do you think your dad would have said about your role at the RSPB? <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think he would have believed it to be honest; I can\u2019t quite believe it myself. I think he\u2019d be proud. You know, it\u2019s a big deal for me to be the president of the RSPB. I play it down, but it is a really big deal because it\u2019s a huge organisation. It\u2019s an important organisation globally. And being the president is something I never thought I\u2019d do, but it\u2019s a proud moment for me, and I know he\u2019d be proud.\u201d <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n\n

\n\n
BBC Countryfile Magazine Plodcast <\/strong><\/em><\/h5>\n\n

Listen to Annabel\u2019s podcast with Dr Amir Khan; visit iTunes or acast.com\/bbccountryfilemagazine<\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Annabel Ross is a writer on food and health issues. <\/p>\n\n

She is also a regular contributor to the Plodcast \u2013 the nature and countryside podcast from BBC Countryfile Magazine<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n

Photo: Rosie Dutton\/RSPB (rspb-images.com)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

TV doctor Amir Khan has recently become president of the RSPB, but what does the role entail? 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