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🇰🇷 South Korea /Health & Science

Feeding Birds Can Help Heal People, Study Finds

From Hankyoreh · () Korean

Translated from Korean and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Documents & data Context piece
  • A Virginia Tech-led study found that 95% of survey respondents said feeding birds positively affected their happiness, with later qualitative research producing a similar result among 83% of respondents.
  • Participants described joy, gratitude, calm and a sense of meaning from helping birds, engaging with the activity and sharing it with others.
  • Researchers said bird feeding could become an accessible therapeutic tool, but warned that irresponsible feeding may spread disease, increase window strikes and alter bird behavior and populations.

Feeding birds may offer people more than a chance to watch wildlife. A study led by researchers at Virginia Tech found that most participants believed the activity had a positive effect on their happiness.

The researchers surveyed participants in FeederWatch, a citizen-science project in the United States and Canada. During winter, participants feed birds, observe them and report what they see. In the survey, 95% said taking part had positively affected their happiness. A later qualitative assessment produced a similar response, with 83% reporting a positive effect.

Feeding birds had a positive effect on my happiness.

· Study respondentsThe statement summarizes the response reported by most participants in the survey and later qualitative assessment.

Participants commonly described feelings of joy, gratitude and calm. They also said the activity helped them become absorbed in participation, find meaning in helping birds and connect with other people. The researchers said the findings suggest bird feeding could potentially play a beneficial and healing role.

The findings suggest that feeding birds can potentially play a beneficial and healing role.

· ResearchersThe researchers described the possible well-being benefits of the activity.

The article also cites earlier studies linking birds and well-being. Research has associated listening to birdsong with reduced anxiety and paranoia, and birdwatching with greater happiness, lower anxiety and a stronger sense of connection to nature. Another study found positive mental-health effects among university students who watched birds regularly.

The researchers cautioned that bird feeding can also harm bird populations by increasing disease transmission, window collisions and predation, while changing bird communities and natural behavior. They said it may be unwise to recommend the activity to everyone without ensuring responsible practices. The challenge is to find ways for people to connect with nature and feel happier while minimizing risks to birds.

Recommending bird feeding uniformly to everyone without ensuring responsible feeding practices may not be wise.

· ResearchersThe researchers warned that feeding birds can harm bird populations if done irresponsibly.
About this summary

Originally published by Hankyoreh in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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