Nature Sounds for Stress Recovery and Healthy Eating: A Lab Experiment Differentiating Water and Bird Sound

Abstract

This lab-based study tested whether nature sounds can lead to less stress reactivity, better stress recovery, less stress-induced eating and healthy food choice stimulation, while differentiating between bird and water sounds. Before (5 min) and after (8 min) the Trier Social Stress Test, 59 participants (47% men, 18–30 years) were exposed to one of three soundtracks: birds, streaming water, or wind as control. Group differences were tested on negative affect, salivary cortisol, heart rate variability, hunger, food craving, snack intake and influence expectations. Both bird and water sounds led to better cortisol recovery (not reactivity) and were reported to be more stress-reducing than wind only. The recovery effect was highest for water sounds. No differential sound effects were found for the food variables. The results confirm the potential implementation of bird and water sounds for stress restoration but future research should test the effects (especially on diet) in real-life settings.