If I could write a prescription for every child that said:
Rx: Outside. One hour a day. Seven days a week.
I probably would.
And unlike most prescriptions, you can’t pick this one up at the pharmacy.
It’s free.
You just have to make room for it.
Children today spend an enormous amount of time indoors: at school, in the car, doing homework, looking at screens, or moving between scheduled activities.
The outdoors gives their bodies something very different.
Light.
Movement.
Space.
Different sounds and textures.
A chance to look farther than a screen or a classroom wall.
And sometimes, simply a chance to breathe.
—– Outdoor Time Usually Becomes Movement Time —–
One thing I love about sending children outside is that most children don’t walk into a backyard or park and immediately decide to sit completely still.
They move.
They run.
Climb.
Ride bikes.
Dig.
Jump.
Explore.
Follow bugs.
Pick up sticks.
Build things.
Outdoor time naturally creates opportunities for movement, which can help counterbalance the many hours children spend sitting during a typical day.
It doesn’t have to be organized exercise.
Play counts.
—– Outside Can Give an Overstimulated Brain a Break ——
Think about the environments children spend their days in.
A classroom may have dozens of children talking, moving, and doing different things.
A television show is stimulating.
A video game is stimulating.
A tablet is stimulating.
Even a busy home can be stimulating.
Sometimes children don’t know how to tell us:
“There is too much happening around me right now.”
Instead, we see the behavior.
They become irritable.
Wild.
Emotional.
Distracted.
Unable to settle.
For some children, changing the environment can help.
Go outside.
Walk.
Move.
Let their eyes look around.
Give their brain something different to process.
Parents often instinctively do this with babies—when the baby becomes fussy and overwhelmed, we carry them outside.
We can remember that strategy with older children, too.
—– Light Is Information for the Body —–
Outdoor light also helps tell our bodies what time of day it is.
The light we experience in the morning is different from the light in the middle of the day or evening.
That daily pattern helps support our internal circadian rhythm—the biological rhythm that helps regulate sleep and wakefulness.
This is one reason I like encouraging families to get outside earlier in the day when they can.
Walk the dog.
Eat breakfast on the patio.
Play for a little while before school.
Walk part of the way to school if that’s realistic.
It doesn’t need to become another complicated item on your checklist.
Just open the door.
—– Give Their Eyes Somewhere Else to Look ——
Children spend a lot of time looking at things close to their faces.
Books.
Schoolwork.
Phones.
Tablets.
Computers.
Outdoor environments naturally encourage children to shift their focus between things that are near and things that are far away.
They might examine a bug in their hand and then look across a field.
Watch something in a tree.
Look at clouds.
Follow a bird across the sky.
Even that variety is very different from spending hours focused on something a few inches or feet away.
—– Let Kids Experience Nature ——
There is also something valuable about allowing children to interact with the physical environment instead of trying to make everything perfectly clean and controlled.
Garden.
Dig in healthy soil.
Walk through grass.
Play in sand.
Plant something together.
Explore a trail.
That doesn’t mean letting a child play in contaminated soil or in an area where animals have left waste.
Use common sense.
But childhood does not have to happen exclusively on sanitized indoor surfaces.
Children are supposed to interact with the world around them.
—– You Don’t Need Perfect Weather —–
Sometimes we tell ourselves we’ll spend more time outside when the weather is perfect.
And then it’s too hot.
Too cold.
Too windy.
Too cloudy.
Too wet.
And somehow months go by.
There are absolutely times when extreme heat, cold, storms, poor air quality, or other conditions make staying indoors the safer option.
But ordinary weather doesn’t always have to stop us.
Sometimes we simply need different clothes.
A jacket.
A hat.
Rain boots.
Layers.
Shade and water.
Children can experience different seasons rather than spending the entire year at the same indoor temperature.
—– Outdoor Time Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated —–
This may be the most important part:
You do not need to turn outdoor time into another elaborate parenting project.
You don’t need a nature curriculum.
You don’t need to drive an hour away.
You don’t need an expensive backyard.
Start where you are.
Try:
Walking around the block
Playing in the backyard
Riding bikes or scooters
Visiting a neighborhood park
Going on a family hike
Gardening
Finding a community garden
Eating a meal outdoors
Visiting a local or national park
Walking the dog together
Looking for leaves, rocks, bugs, or birds
Sitting outside and reading
If you live somewhere without easy access to green space, start smaller.
Even caring for a plant and intentionally finding little opportunities to connect with the natural world can be a beginning.
—-Make Outside Part of the Rhythm—-
You don’t have to wait until your child is struggling before suggesting they go outside.
Build it into the day.
Maybe your family gets outside in the morning.
Maybe it’s the first thing the kids do after school.
Maybe everyone takes a walk after dinner.
Maybe weekends mean a park, trail, bike ride, or garden.
Find something that fits your family.
Because the goal isn’t to create another rule you feel guilty about breaking.
It’s to remember something very simple:
Children’s bodies were made to move.
They benefit from light, space, play, exploration, and breaks from highly stimulating indoor environments.
Sometimes one of the best things we can do for a child doesn’t require another appointment, another program, or another device.
Sometimes we just need to open the door.
Want pediatric care that looks at the whole picture of your child’s health?
Vital Integrative Pediatric Clinic combines thoughtful, relationship-centered care with an integrative approach to children’s wellness.