Dacher Keltner, psychology professor at the University of California, Berkeley, and author of Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life, says that awe is both a mood and an immunity booster.
Keltners research demonstrates that awe connecting with something larger than ourselves, like the wonder and magnificence of nature helps reduce pro-inflammatory cytokines, which are responsible for putting our immune systems on alert.
By contrast, spending time in nature boosts antioxidant activity in the body. Being in the bush, paying attention to the wonder of the world, and giving ourselves over to awe these are ways of detoxing both body and mind.
