Living around nature is only good for your health once your country is actually wealthy enough to support you.
March 26, 2026
Original Paper
Global Evidence for a Biodiversity-health Transition
SSRN · 6458147
The Takeaway
Global analysis suggests a 'biodiversity-health transition' where nature's variety only starts adding years to human life expectancy after a society has surpassed a threshold of 80+ years. In poorer nations, traditional health factors like nutrition and sanitation completely drown out the positive effects of the ecosystem.
From the abstract
Background: Biodiversity underpins ecosystem functions relevant to human health, but its health importance may vary across stages of social development. We aimed to identify where along the development–health continuum biodiversity becomes associated with population health at the global scale. <div> <br> </div> <div> Methods: We conducted a global, cross‑national analysis of 204 countries and territories using 2021 life expectancy, stratified a priori at an 80-year threshold, and vertebrate spec