April 24, 2016, the First-ever National Park Rx Day.

Exercise is Medicine is the message to be spread on 24th April 2016 all over the world.

This day will be celebrated across the United States (why not, all over the world) to promote the growing movement of prescribing parks and nature to patients as a means for improving human health.

National Park Rx Day encourages everyone to see recreational visits to parks and public lands as very important parts of their health. According to the National Parks Service, there are eight reasons to get outdoors and enjoy a walk in the park on Park Rx Day!

A Park is the Perfect destination for family fun, both for city natives and for area tourists. Offering an array of educational and recreational activities, Central Park is diverse enough to offer something of interest to children and adults alike.

1. Being in nature can improve your mood.
2. Having access to parks can increase physical activity and combat obesity.
3. Parks and their health benefits can be enjoyed by anyone, regardless of who you are or from where you come.
4. Contact with nature through parks improves all people's physical, mental and spiritual health.
5. Parks foster social connections which are vital to community cohesion and contribute to social well-being.
6. For children, parks foster active play, which is associated with physical, cognitive and social benefits. An open field is a great place to practice kicking around the soccer ball or have a game of catch. Show up with a ball and you just might find enough willing players for a pick-up game.
7. For adolescents, parks improve mental and social health during what is often a challenging time of life.
8. Park use is linked to physical and mental health benefits among adults, especially older adults.

National Park Rx Day is a promotion of the National Park's "Healthy Parks Healthy People" initiative. It is a global movement that harnesses the power of parks and public lands in contributing to a healthy civil society.

Movement, in all its forms, is advantageous to healthy body function. Outdoor physical activity/play can and should be interesting, enjoyable and satisfying. In that way, it will provide both reinforcement and motivation for continued participation. This is the goal of National Park Rx Day.

Participation even for shorter duration will confirm and/or instill the realization that a reasonable level of physical fitness is beneficial for both outdoor activities and everyday life!

Ref
http://www.acsm.org/