Does a nature walk improve state body appreciation in children?

The available evidence suggests that exposure to natural environments promotes more positive body image, but to date this research is limited to adult populations. Conversely, it is not currently known whether nature exposure has similar effects in children. To answer this question, we invited two groups of children in Poland – matched in terms of age, gender identities, and racialised status – to go for either a walk in a natural environment (n = 80) or a built environment (n = 81). Before and after the walks, they were asked to complete a measure of state body appreciation, adapted for completion by children. The results of a mixed analysis of variance and tests of simple effects indicated that children who went for a walk in the natural environment reported a significant improvement to state body appreciation (d = 0.35), whereas those who went for a walk in the built environment did not (d = 0.04). The results also showed no significant impact of gender identity (girls vs. boys) or age (middle vs. late childhood) on this finding. In discussing our findings, we acknowledge the preliminary nature of the present study, suggest directions for extending our work, and consider the implications of our work in terms of promoting positive body image in children.