Forest terpenes and stress: Examining the associations of filtered vs. non-filtered air in a real-life natural environment.

ABSTRACT: Human health may benefit from exposure to a class of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) consisting of isoprene units, known as terpenes. In this double-blind, randomized crossover trial, participants sat in a forest for two 60-min sessions, one in which terpenes were filtered out of the ambient air they breathed, and another in which they were not, separated by a minimum of an eight-day washout period. The primary outcome was the high frequency (HF) component of heart rate variability (HRV; measured continuously). Secondary outcomes included skin conductance levels (SCL) (measured continuously), self-reported stress and affect (measured every 20 min), blood pressure, heart rate, cortisol and inflammatory cytokines (measured before and after sessions). Serum concentrations of terpe

SUBMITTER: Levy CM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12103269 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature