Associations of Happiness, Ikigai, and Enjoyment of Daily Life with Frequency of Forest Walking in a Japanese General Population: The Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort Daiko Study.
Morita E, Kawai S, et al. • International journal of environmental research and public health • 2026
Frequency of forest walking was associated with daily happiness, ikigai, and enjoyment of daily life, suggesting that occasional forest bathing may lead to improved well-being and quality of life.
Key Findings
Results
People who went for forest walks at least once per month had significantly higher odds of frequently feeling happy compared to those who rarely engaged in forest walking.
Adjusted odds ratio (aOR) for frequency of feeling happy was 1.72 (95% CI: 1.29–2.28) for those walking in forests at least once per month versus those who rarely did so.
The analysis used logistic regression with those who rarely engaged in forest walking as the reference group.
The study was cross-sectional in design using data from the J-MICC Daiko study secondary survey.
Total sample included 3,472 participants, of whom 2,518 were women.
Results
Participants who walked in forests at least once per month had significantly higher odds of reporting a greater degree of happiness compared to infrequent forest walkers.
aOR for degree of happiness was 1.54 (95% CI: 1.14–2.09) for those reporting forest walks at least once per month.
The reference group consisted of participants who reported rarely engaging in forest walking.
This finding was derived from logistic regression analysis adjusted for potential confounders.
Results
Forest walking at least once per month was associated with significantly higher odds of reporting ikigai (a sense of life purpose or meaning).
aOR for ikigai was 1.65 (95% CI: 1.25–2.20) for those who reported going for forest walks at least once per month versus rarely.
Ikigai is described as a Japanese concept relating to a sense of purpose or meaning in daily life.
The association was statistically significant based on the confidence interval not crossing 1.0.
Results
The strongest association found was between forest walking frequency and enjoyment of daily life, with monthly forest walkers showing markedly higher odds of reporting daily life enjoyment.
aOR for daily life enjoyment was 2.38 (95% CI: 1.60–3.35) for those walking in forests at least once per month compared to those who rarely did so.
This was the largest effect size among the four well-being outcomes examined.
The outcome 'enjoyment of daily life' was one of four well-being measures analyzed alongside frequency of feeling happy, degree of happiness, and ikigai.
Methods
The study was a cross-sectional analysis using data from the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort (J-MICC) Daiko study secondary survey.
A total of 3,472 participants were included in the analysis, with 2,518 being women.
The study examined habitual forest walking behavior, distinguishing between those walking at least once per month and those who rarely engaged in the practice.
The study authors note that only a limited number of epidemiological studies have previously examined the association between habitual forest walking and daily health.
The cross-sectional design limits causal inference about the direction of the association between forest walking and well-being.
What This Means
This research looked at whether how often people take walks in forests is related to their sense of happiness, purpose in life (called 'ikigai' in Japan), and enjoyment of daily life. The researchers analyzed survey data from 3,472 adults in Japan and compared people who walked in forests at least once a month to those who rarely or never did. They found that regular forest walkers were significantly more likely to report feeling happy, having a strong sense of life purpose, and enjoying their daily lives — with the strongest link being for enjoyment of daily life, where monthly forest walkers were about 2.4 times more likely to report enjoying daily life compared to those who rarely walked in forests.
This study adds to a growing body of research on 'shinrin-yoku' (forest bathing), which has mostly focused on short-term or immediate effects of being in nature. This study instead looked at people's everyday habits and general well-being, finding that even occasional forest walks — as infrequent as once a month — were associated with better psychological well-being across multiple measures. Because this was a cross-sectional study (a snapshot in time rather than following people over time), it cannot prove that forest walking causes greater happiness; it is also possible that happier people are more likely to go on forest walks.
The findings suggest that incorporating regular nature walks, even relatively infrequently, may be linked to a higher quality of life and greater sense of well-being in the general population. This research could inform public health discussions about the potential role of accessible natural environments in supporting mental and emotional health.
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Morita E, Kawai S, Sasakabe T, Okada R, Kubo Y, Mitsuda Y, et al.. (2026). Associations of Happiness, Ikigai, and Enjoyment of Daily Life with Frequency of Forest Walking in a Japanese General Population: The Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort Daiko Study.. International journal of environmental research and public health. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph23081020