IF you're feeling stressed, rather than wallow in front of the television try looking out of the window, with a U.S. study finding scenes of nature can alleviate minor stress levels.

Researchers at the Human Interaction with Nature and Technological Systems Lab at the University of Washington set out to look at whether nature, either the real thing or depicted technologically, can impact on minor stress levels.

The study involved measuring people's heart recovery rate from minor stress when they were exposed to a natural scene through a window and when exposed to the same scene shown on a high-definition plasma screen, or a blank wall.

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