Search Here

Children who play outdoors are happier and smarter than those who stick to television and video games.

New research from Michigan State University reveals that children who spent five to 10 hours outdoors had a better sense of self-fulfillment than those who don't, according to the Daily Mail.

The study also revealed that playing outside might enhance children's appreciation for beauty and their scope of creativity and imagination. Children who play outside also seemed to feel happier and were more curious about the world around them.

Lead researchers Gretel Van Wieren and Stephen Kellert studied a group of children between the ages of seven and eight.

The study also revealed that parents of kids who expressed the highest appreciation toward nature and the strongest spirituality had spent a large proportion of their own childhood outdoors.

"This is the first generation that's significantly plugged in to a different extent and so what does this mean?" said Van Wieren, according to the Daily Mail.

"Modern life has created a distance between humans and nature that now we're realizing isn't good in a whole host of ways," she explained. "So it's a scary question: How will this affect our children and how are we going to respond?"