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Daily Outdoor Play Boosts Toddler Mental Health 6-14%

6/8/2026

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Story summary
  • Professor Helen Dodd reported that each day of outdoor play for two-to-four-year-olds raises low-symptom mental-health odds by 6 to 14 percent.
  • The study of 4,151 Scottish children assessed from age four to eight measured aggression, impulsivity, hyperactivity, anxiety and depression while controlling for sex, ethnicity, education, chronic conditions, parental employment and park or garden access.
  • Frequent preschool outdoor play was linked to a stable low-symptom mental-health trajectory through middle childhood.