NatureBoost Episode 70: One Health Part 1
November 2025
SMA
[Intro music ♫]
>> Hey there, and welcome back to NatureBoost! The podcast where we explore the outdoors in Missouri, one adventure at a time! I'm Jill Pritchard with the Missouri Department of Conservation.
[Birds chirping, nature sounds.]
Have you ever thought about how your health is connected to a tree? Or, to the robin outside your window, or even to the soil beneath your feet? It may sound a little out there, but what if I told you that the air you breathe, the food you eat, and the health of wild animals all weave together into one giant, living system? That's the heart of something called "One Health", a way of thinking that recognizes how the wellbeing of people, animals and the environment are all connected. And, it's a concept that's becoming more important than ever, as we continue to see research on how nature improves our lives.
[Birds chirping, nature sounds.]
[Music ♪]
Today, we're discussing this idea. How One Health works, why it matters, and what it means right here in Missouri. Because, understanding this connection helps us care for not just our wildlife and wild places, but for ourselves, too. To explore the web of life that ties us all together, I sat down in the studio with MDC Policy Supervisor Lorisa Smith, and MDC Science Branch Chief and State Wildlife Veterinarian, Dr. Sherri Russell. Here's our conversation.
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>> One Health really is just recognizing that everything is connected. When we talk about the environment, we talk about animal health, we talk about human health ... all three of those silos really are more connected than many of us typically think about on a day to day basis.
[2:04.]
The health of one does have true impacts on the health of others.
>> Okay. So, the Missouri Department of Conservation is coming into One Health purely from a wildlife standpoint?
>> Yes. That is absolutely our focus. We want to take care of nature. We take care of the wild things in nature. But we're also recognizing that as I said, those pieces that we're responsible for taking care of, do have an impact and are very important to the overall health of also humans.
>> Mhmm.
>> Anything to add to that, Dr. Russell?
>> I think she explained it very well. I guess I would extend the conversation just a little bit, to think about the human health and wildlife health, environmental health ... not only are they connected, but they can work in a mutually reinforcing cycle so that we get towards flourishing across all of them. Because of course, citizens are the basis of the Missouri Department of Conservation, and services to the citizen. We're interested in our fellow citizens, and of course ourselves being healthy. So, we're just trying to understand all the connections between the sectors.
>> When you say "sectors" ...?
>> Oh yeah, thank you. I might have been a little jargony there. So when we all have jobs, like maybe we're a dentist, or maybe we're a teacher ... we have a "sector" of work. A teacher's bit of work is teaching and understanding that. So, in health areas or in science, there's sectors of work or areas. So, human health is oftentimes considered a "sector." It's an economic sector, and of course it's a sector in our whole life. We pay our insurance or go to the doctor. That's that sort of work.
[4:00.]
And for wildlife health, we have professionals who are engaged in wildlife health. Similarly, all of the habitat work that happens in Missouri to try to support our natural resources and our friends over in parks. All of that is in this environmental health. And of course, our friends in the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. They're involved there too ... as well as our federal partners. So, "sectors" to me means groups of people who work in certain areas. The One Health idea is really the idea that we are in each other's business all the time. In this case, being in each other's business can be mutually reinforcing or helpful. If the agricultural sector of Missouri thrives, then the people that are associated with those systems will thrive. Similarly, very good water systems of course are foundational to human health. That's what I'm talking about.
So, clean water of course is necessary for human health, but it's also necessary for wildlife health. It's also necessary for agricultural health. That's the idea of the crissing and crossing of sectors, to aim towards flourishing.
>> I would say one benefit for conservation is recognizing that for conservation to succeed, to be successful for the health of all of these components, it takes all of us working together in tandem. So yes, being in each other's business, respecting those sectors but also looking for opportunities as Dr. Russell said of "where does it make sense for us to overlap, and to work and align our work together for the benefit of all of those sectors?" And, the three pieces of One Health.
>> And you know, it's a particularly timely conversation. We've all been through the COVID times. We emerged on the other side of it, and we realized in a really direct way all our connections. At the same time, society is undergoing a digital transformation.
[6:00.]
And, the humans are spending an awful lot of time, and the children ... a lot of time on screens. So, the One Health conversation is to harness the power of nature to work as somewhat of a ballast or a balancer for our digital lifestyles. We are seeing that ... connecting people with nature can be antidotal to some societal ills that have occurred, or are occurring as a consequence of societal shifts.
>> Almost, nature as a medicine, in a sense?
>> Yes. In fact, I conceive of nature as medicine. You can take that as reduction ... as little as you want. For sure, the data is absolutely overwhelming that time spent in nature is medicinal for physical health and mental health. So ... it depends on what data you look at, but 1 in 6 Americans is inflicted with chronic disease, and numbers are staggering on mental health. Nature is an available solution for some of our largest challenges.
>> Especially like you say, during this time when we're all in front of screens, we do our work on computers, we go home and we look at the tinier computer in our hand, we watch TV, our kids are on tablets ... we're constantly looking at the blue light on a screen. We're talking to each other through screens. You mentioned during the pandemic, I think nature was a source of relief for a lot of people because that was really the only thing that we had to do as recreation. So, those health benefits, mental and physical, are truly so significant and impactful. I love that there is more conversations being had, putting the focus back into nature.
[8:07.]
And specifically, with this One Health ...
>> Framing.
>> Framing.
>> So, physicians are seeing that as ... not a replacement for their current therapies, but as a helpful add on.
>> Addition, yeah.
>> It's a helpful addition. It's like a foundation of what I consider a lifestyle medicine. So ... healthy lifestyle creates a healthy person, and then healthy people create healthy towns and cities and communities. I believe ... I have evidence for this, that a thriving human population is helpful for us to have the resources in order to be able to invest in conservation, and move conservation forward. That's what I mean by a reinforcing circle. So, healthier people, then they have the energy and the bandwidth, and the interest in keeping their community and natural resources safe and clean.
>> Yeah. You talked about nature being a medicine, and that really resonates with me. I know growing up, I loved to be outdoors here in Missouri, and just engaging in nature through the different seasons. So, winter ... we were outside throwing snowballs and sledding down the hill in front of the house. Then it went into spring, where we were making mudpies and making necklaces out of the flowers that were blooming. Then we'd transition into summer, and it was bicycles and the long, sunshine-filled days and nights. Then we'd move into fall, and I just remember so vividly raking leaves with my sister. The biggest pile we could get to, so we could jump into it afterwards. So, just that time spent outside was fun when I was a kid. Now, having worked in conservation ...
[10:01.]
Reading all of the literature that is available, understanding the science behind why nature is so fulfilling and necessary for us as humans ... has really increased, and I'd say just ... yeah. My appreciation for nature today has grown. And, it absolutely can be viewed as a medicine. I'm excited and encouraged by the number of physicians that are starting to embrace this idea. I think that goes right back to blending those sectors, making sure that folks know that what we do through the Missouri Department of Conservation to take care of nature, and the wildlife and plant species ... so that people can enjoy their time in nature ... working with the physicians, so they can prescribe nature for their patients through nature prescriptions. It is a full circle, and integrating all of those sectors ... but it is absolutely a part of medicine.
>> I was just thinking when I was listening to you, Lorisa ... what's different from the time you were a child, to the time that my grandchildren are children. What I notice that's really different, is that parents have to be quite intentional about their children having time outdoors. Quite intentional. For you, it might have been kind of ... there weren't those screens, likely. That was an obvious thing to do, to go rake leaves and play in the leaves. Now, that Nintendo Switch is on the counter, and that ... I embrace technology, and I hope we can talk about that Jill, how technology can help us get into nature. Because, I don't think it's a "this or that." I think it's a "this and that." I think that the parents, and myself ... I have to be quite a lot more intentional than even 10 years ago to make sure I have time to go outside. I have to prioritize it as a rock in my scheduling bucket.
[12:00.]
So ...
>> I love you said that. Because, I think ... I've always thought of it as in that black and white mindset. "I have to turn my phone off. I have to turn the TV off. I have to go outside. I can't have both." But, you can ...
>> You can.
>> You can! And you can't escape the technology today, you know? It's so engrained, and it is necessary in our work and in our lives. I'm so happy that you made that point. I think it's an excellent point, Dr. Russell.
>> Well you know, we're even learning to use tools that will help us quantify both the health of our environment and how much time we spend outdoors. So for example, there's an app called "Nature Quant", which will you a "nature score." If you're trying to keep track of "have you made a change", just like if you're trying to go on a diet ... "did I actually change the food I ate? Did I actually change my nature diet?" What I'm sharing, is that there's technology that can help us know if we're making that change. Because, I think we are now an indoor species, we Americans. Globally, we're an indoor species, with us spending 97% of our time indoors. That's a startling number ... once you really think about what does that mean, 97% of your time indoors ... but probably the people listening to this podcast, odds are they're in their car or they're in their house folding the laundry, or something like that.
Maybe they're outdoors, but ... the point is, we're mostly indoors. If we're going to move back outdoors to get some of the health benefits, we're going to have to have a way of knowing whether we win, or whether we're losing. So Jill, kind of the easy rule of thumb is if you get 120 minutes a week, you're probably at the minimum necessary to maintain your health.
[14:04.]
And so ...
>> To maintain your health, 120 minutes a week ...
>> 17 minutes a day, but you can count the time you walk from your car to where you work, and you can count the time you're at a soccer game. But this gets to the next point, to go to what Lorisa was saying about how important it is that we have in Missouri, the Missouri Department of Conservation. And, such well developed parks, and such well developed urban centers where people can get outdoors. There is a difference in the ability of nature to heal, depending on its integrity. And, this science is just being developed now. I guess in one word, wildlife biodiversity supports resilience in that system, and it also supports resilience in the human body. So ... we don't have time to talk about all of that Jill, but it's interesting science.
>> I love that you brought up the 17 minutes a day. It sounds so easy to do.
>> It's not that easy!
>> I love the app, Nature Quant, because it holds you accountable. It shows you how much time you're spending in nature.
>> Or, not spending in nature. [Laughing.]
>> As it is sometimes! So, I find myself trying to say to myself, "I'll get a bowl of some nature." I know that's medical talk, because that's how I think. But I'm like "I'l get a big dose on the weekend." Whereas ...
>> A nature boost ...?
[Multiple speakers, unclear.]
>> So, a "nature boost" is actually very valuable. Longer stretches have more substantive benefits for blood pressure and cortisol levels, and this and that. But any kind of hack you have, like 17 minutes a day, or 120 ... it's just a framework. It's just a tool.
>> Okay. So, this Nature Quant app, this is an app that's already available ...?
>> Yes.
>> Okay. Do you both have this app?
>> Yes.
>> [unclear.]
>> And you use it?
[16:01.]
>> Yes. It's become quite a challenge, I think, for a lot of us ... here in the agency, we like to see who has spent more time out in nature, and who is meeting their goals. [Laughing.]
>> Okay!
>> The technology is early. It doesn't yet effectively have a way to register biodiversity. So, I want to make sure I'm clear about that. It's using LIDAR data. It's a lot of tree cover data. So, you can get a bit of a nature score from sitting in your office with a tree right outside the window. But, that doesn't really get you to your targets.
>> Do you have to have the app open whenever you're outside, or ...
>> It runs in the background.
>> It already runs in the background, so it'll give you your daily nature score?
>> Yes.
>> Okay.
>> And it is quite challenging. If you haven't met your goal for the week, it's like "ooh, I really want to get outside, I really want to ..." Like, that reward and seeing yourself reach that target is a great incentive for spending time outside.
>> What you realize ... [unclear.] I think time gets away from us. We're all overbusy, we're all overscheduled. We can't give ourselves 5 minutes to sit down on the step outside. We think we have to be checking our email, or looking at some social media platform, and you know ... it's so hard to stay up to date on current events. All of that seems very taxing. It's just another tool. I mean, it's just like exercising a certain amount. We had that "10,000 steps a day" thing, and then it got to be well ... "should it be 12,000?" I don't think Lorisa and I are here to say you have to hit 120 minutes a week, but we are here to say the data is quite clear that being in nature is good for the human condition.
And it sounds so counterintuitive, when our schedules are so full, and we have so many things on our to do list that we need to check off. To make time to just go outside and take a break or go walk a trail sounds very counterintuitive. But it also helps us reset our minds, and eventually be more productive as well.
[18:03.]
>> Mhmm.
>> Taking care of us helps us, as Dr. Russell said ... it helps us take care of the communities that we're a part of.
>> The mental health benefits are some of the most interesting impacts. Over the weekend, I slept outside with my grandkids ...
>> Like camping?
>> Yeah, like camping. And, it was kind of cold, and it was kind of rainy. There was all of that. So, that builds resilience you know? Or that's the story I tell myself, that I'm building resilient humans. The story I want to tell you is that next morning, I'm quite sure I was nicer to my husband than usual, and I'm also quite sure that I was thinking a little better. So, sometimes you can feel it in your bones, or you can feel it in your shoulders. And that was a longer nature time, but ... I guess I'm saying that the science is real, the data is there, but you will also feel it as you walk through the world, if you have that time outdoors.
>> I know what you're saying. I took my first backpacking trip ... one of our programs, yeah. Over the summer, I recorded a podcast episode on it. The instructor, Sam Stewart said "just wait, because the next day you may be tired, but you're going to feel ..."
>> Better.
>> Better. You're going to just be energized and motivated, and ... I truly did. It was a noticeable, noticeable effect. It's one of those things where it's like nature takes care of us ... we take care of nature.
>> It's actually quite a simple equation, but it's one of those things that sounds awfully simple ... but sometimes it's a little hard to execute.
[20:01.]
Missouri is a magical place in a lot of ways. We have such diverse ecosystems, north to south, east to west. You can have the whole world in one state. Then, we have these citizens who support the Department of Conservation, which is remarkable. Then we have people who dedicate their lives to the little species that people don't know about, and the little things that people maybe don't care about. And all of that helps us thrive. Some of that is unseen and invisible, but you feel it like you did Jill, after your camping trip. The impact of that is felt. That is really "one health." It's this one health, like "one health" meaning ... it's not just human health, it's not just environmental health, it's not just animal health. It has to include all of that.
>> That we're all connected, and we all touch each other.
>> Right.
>> And that it's reciprocal. We take care of nature, and then nature takes care of us. Seeing it as a circle ... it is all connected. I think it's a great way to understand the system of One Health, and how important ... it's not a linear line. There's not a start, there's not an end. It just keeps going.
>> And a part of One Health that we haven't talked about today Jill, that I want to make sure I give a little time to ... is that seeing health as a system helps us help each other. So, sometimes we have challenges in one area or another. We have a virus that maybe will cross between species, or we have a toxin in water that is maybe produced over here, and has impacts over there. So, some of the beauty of One Health thinking is to look outside your own backyard to ask for help.
[22:00.]
And as things become more complex, and we face more wicked challenges in our world, it's good to have friends. Because if you go alone, it's lots harder than if you go together. I think we are so fortunate in Missouri. The Department of Agriculture here is such a good partner with the Department of Conservation, and our farmers are good conservation partners. I at least feel so grateful that on the one side, we have the healthy part of the story. But on the other side, we have the challenges to the health of these systems, and there's also a beautiful place for integration. Whether that's our friends in human healthcare, like the doctors or human health management like the agencies working with them ... has made us stronger, and I think it's made us wiser. Because, I think it allows us to see somebody else's perspective.
>> It allows a space for learning from one another, and being able to use what we learn from those other partners to do our jobs better. It's been a great platform for that, the shared knowledge, the shared learning ...
>> Because we all want clean air, and we all want clean water, and we all want to eat ... and we all want human wellbeing. That's our thing that we can all ground on together. And then, we can use our diverse sectors or our diverse trainings or our diverse expertise to help each other be more resilient.
>> There's that support there as well.
>> Mhmm.
>> So, in closing ... why should ... I think it's pretty clear, but why should people care about One Health?
>> I think people should care about One Health because they care about themselves. I don't think it's any more complicated than that. They care about their families, they care about the health of their community, and I think widening the lens ... health has to be more than going to the doctor, and healthy families have to be more than picking the right school.
[24:01.]
It doesn't need to make it more complicated. It's actually a simplification, actually, of how we approach balance. So, I think that's why people should care. I personally don't care if anybody remembers what One Health is. But I do hope that in these conversations that we're having, that we reconnect with the necessary pieces of being a human. And, take advantage of nature which is right outside our door.
>> I could not say it any better. It is important to our quality of life, it's important to our simple wellbeing, and it's available to all of us. Each and every one of us have access to nature in whatever form it looks like. So, finding the beauty in that, nature close to home, and enjoying it and appreciating it ... and maybe seeing it through a new lens than you have before.
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>> It's inspiring to think that taking care of nature is also taking care of ourselves! So, the next time you step outside, whether it's a walk through the woods or even just walking to your car, remember. You're part of a much bigger picture. A healthy planet means healthy people, and healthy people can keep the planet thriving. Missouri is full of places to explore the outdoors and get a nature boost. Find a conservation area to discover near you, at missouriconservation.org.
A big thanks to Lorisa Smith, and Dr. Sherri Russell from MDC for joining me today. And be sure to tune in to next month's episode, where we're taking a closer look at how the One Health approach is being put into action right here in Missouri, through the Boone County One Health Model. It's an inspiring partnership that brings together MDC and many local agencies to show what One Health looks like on the ground where community, wildlife and the environment all thrive together.
[26:09.]
I'm Jill Pritchard with the Missouri Department of Conservation, encouraging you to get your daily dose of the outdoors!
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>> I think a little more ... "hey, hey! Get outside!" Too much of that ... I don't think we can do too much of that.
[Laughing, unclear.]
[End of podcast.]