A recent study led by the University of Vienna, including ECH members Claus Lamm and Mat White, reveals that experiencing nature can alleviate acute physical pain. Surprisingly, even virtual nature, such as nature videos, can reduce pain-related brain signals. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, researchers found that watching nature videos made acute pain feel less intense and unpleasant, suggesting nature-based therapies as promising complementary approaches to pain management.
This research, published today in Nature Communications, was led by PhD student Max Steininger. The study highlights the potential of nature-based therapeutic approaches. Participants were shown different types of videos while their brain activity was measured. Results indicated that nature scenes significantly reduced pain and brain activity associated with pain processing. This opens up new possibilities for using virtual nature in pain relief, providing accessible and effective solutions.
The study was conducted at the University of Vienna in collaboration with researchers from the Universities of Exeter and Birmingham (UK) and the Max Planck Institute for Human Development. For the first time, researchers from the fields of neuroscience and environmental psychology worked together on this research topic at the University of Vienna.
Maximilian O. Steininger, Mathew P. White, Lukas Lengersdorff, Lei Zhang, Alexander J. Smalley, Simone Kühn, Claus Lamm: Nature exposure induces analgesic effects by acting on nociception-related neural processing. 2025. In Nature Communications.
