In this age of surgical miracles, high-tech medical equipment and pharmaceutical breakthroughs, you may be surprised to learn that one of the best steps you can take to protect your health is to step outside and spend some time in the grass, dirt and water.

Our ancestors enjoyed the healing power of nature, and now scientists are starting to catch up. Researchers in recent years have documented how contact with nature can decrease mental fatigue and accidents, and enhance mood, concentration and problem solving. Just having a view of nature has been shown to improve hospital patients’ recovery and reduce illness rates among office workers and prison inmates. Exposure to wildlife, horseback riding, hiking, camping and farms can also be therapeutic for a variety of health conditions in adults and children.

Much of this type of research is focusing on children, and in fact an entire movement has sprung up to connect kids with the healing power of nature. Congress has taken up legislation called No Child Left Inside, which aims to strengthen kids’ environmental understanding and activity. Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods, has popularized the term “nature-deficit disorder” to describe the health consequences of a disconnect with the environment, such as:

• Obesity. Rates of childhood and adult obesity and related conditions including diabetes and heart disease have grown at astonishing rates in recent years, partly because of reduced outdoor activity time. “The No Child Left Inside Act would help address this problem by increasing the time students spend learning about nature, both in and outside the classroom. Such lessons are often more engaging to students and often lead them to become more active outside,” the Chesapeake Bay Foundation states. And new research demonstrates that greener neighborhoods mean slimmer and healthier children.
  
  
• Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). An “exposure to ordinary natural settings in the course of common after-school and weekend activities may be widely effective in reducing attention deficit symptoms in children,” according to research published in the American Journal of Public Health. Participation in green activities—such as nature walks—helped ADHD patients from a wide range of backgrounds keep focused and complete tasks, scientists found. An Israeli study of children with learning disabilities yielded similar results.
  
  
• Stress. Access to nature, even houseplants, can help children cope with stress and adversity, according to research at Cornell University.
  
  
• Depression and seasonal affective disorder. Major depression requires medical treatment, but physical activity, especially outdoors, can help ease symptoms. For your average case of winter blues, the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests spending time outside every day and, if possible, taking the family to a sunny vacation spot in mid-winter.

Basking under the sun for just a few minutes can also help supply bone-building vitamin D. Learn more about the health benefits of vitamin D and how you can get them.

Experts emphasize that you needn’t trek to wilderness preserves to enjoy nature’s benefits–simply strolling in a city park or tending a rooftop garden can make a difference.

More: Get helpful advice from the message boards–try Fitness and Health, Child Health, The Latest Diets and Workouts and many others.