Taking a brief break from work can be refreshing. A cup of coffee in the office tea room? Lunch at a restaurant with colleagues? A walk around the block?
Many young white-collar workers in Shanghai are saying "none of the above" and heading for nearby parks to stretch out on the lawn.
A small lawn area beside the Yunjin Road Metro Station in Xuhui District became such a favorite respite site that bald spots appeared in the turf.
"The lawn is now closed for maintenance," said Zhang Heng, a white-collar worker from a nearby office block. "I guess it bore the brunt of so many people lying on it, especially under trees. I used to go there until a strange bug crawled up my leg one day."
Imaginechina
A lawn near the Yunjin Road Metro Station in Xuhui District has become a favorite haven for young office workers during lunch break.
A netizen posted a photo of the bald areas on the lawn caused by excessive use. The lawn is now closed for maintenance.
This trend toward park breaks became particularly evident with the coming of springtime.
Zhang said she discovered the park and began taking a rest on the lawn instead of spending her lunch break in the office or with friends at a restaurant.
"Most of the restaurants in the area are busy at lunchtime, and I often had to wait for like 20 minutes before getting a seat," she said. "It all wasn't particularly restful, so I started just grabbing a sandwich and lunching on the lawn."
The trend went viral in Shanghai after the idea of the "20-minute park effect" caught on in China.
In 2019, a study by University of Michigan showed that taking a minimum 20-minute break outside the office enhanced a feeling of closeness to nature and significantly lowered stress hormone levels.
The results were published in the journal "Frontiers in Psychology," which described the breaks as low-cost "nature pills."
Landscape architect and ecologist MaryCarol Hunter, a retired associate professor at the university and lead author of the research, explained that "for the greatest payoff, in terms of efficiently lowering levels of the stress hormone cortisol, you should spend 20 to 30 minutes sitting or walking in a place that provides you with a sense of nature."
Hunter and her colleagues designed an 8-week experiment. Participants were asked to take a "nature pill" for 10 minutes or more at least three times a week. Levels of cortisol were measured from saliva samples taken before and after the breaks.
"Participants were free to choose the time of day, duration and the place of their nature experience, which was defined as anywhere outside that, in the opinion of the participant, made them feel like they were interacting with nature," Hunter explained in the journal article.
The data revealed that just a 20-minute nature break was enough to significantly reduce cortisol levels. But those who spent 20 to 30 minutes outside the office had cortisol levels dropping at the greatest rate.
"Healthcare practitioners can use our results as an evidence-based rule of thumb on what to put in a nature-pill prescription," said Hunter. "It provides the first estimates of how nature experiences impact stress levels in the context of normal daily life."
So do those taking "nature pills" feel the effects?
Zhang Heng and her friend Melissa Yang said that depends.
"When the weather is good, and you don't really have much on your plate, then it's a good way to refresh your mind," said Zhang. "When the plum rain season begins and its muggy even when not raining, going outside doesn't feel that comfortable."
Yang, however, said she never quite shakes the stress of work when going out to walk in a park or lie on the lawn.
"I tried it once when I went out to have a walk to cool myself down," she said. "But I ended up being obsessed about how many minutes I was wasting and became anxious. I guess one has to build a healthy mindset before taking the 'nature pill.'"
Shanghai is an ideal city for those seeking outside office break because of the proliferation of local "pocket parks."
By the end of 2025, the city will have more than 1,000 parks, most of which will be "pocket parks" dotting different corners of streets.
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A pocket park was opened in May near Yuyuan Garden in Huangpu District.
Century-old Changping Road in Jing'an District is a good example. The first phase of its "pocket park belt" was completed this month.
An 800-meter-long walkway links several small parks and greenbelt areas, with walks through beds of flowers and shrubbery.
"We have planted 200 species, including evergreens so park users can enjoy the view in all seasons," said Yu Jinlong, chief designer of the project. "We hope that new passageway will create a positive relationship between people and nature."
A blueprint showing how 10 pocket parks will be a walking retreat in Jing'an District soon.
