Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

BoredomIncarnate t1_j4rlc5m wrote

Reply to comment by ommnian in Living in a greener residential area increases the diversity of oligosaccharides in breastmilk. This in turn may affect the child’s health, as the oligosaccharides in breastmilk can protect the infant from harmful microbes and reduce the risk of developing allergies and diseases. by universityofturku

At least in this context, defining quality as ecological healthy with high biodiversity seems like the right choice.

While we are obviously talking averages/in general, I would guess that for every rural community with healthy lakes and streams, there are twice as many with monoculture farms with heavy herbicide and pesticide usage, which might not confer as much benefit if I am understanding correctly (which I might not be). I can’t back up those numbers, but maybe someone has the relevant data.

I would also like to note that I said “better access”, which doesn’t necessarily mean that other people don’t have access. Furthermore, I was simply trying to explain why wealth could be a confounding factor, not necessarily suggesting that there couldn’t be people seeing the same benefit without being wealthy.

I think that the bottom line is that more studies looking at how benefits vary depending on which kind of green space is available would be potentially helpful.

2