Health benefits of travel: Could travel slow down aging?

A recent study from a university in Australia looks at how travel affects entropy in the human body and what health benefits that provides, including the potential of slowing down aging.

“The Principle of Entropy Increase: A Novel View of How Tourism Influences Human Health” was published in the Journal of Travel Research in August, according to Fox News.

The study used an entropy perspective to look at how travel could affect an individual’s health.

“For the first time, an interdisciplinary study has applied the theory of entropy to tourism, finding that travel could have positive health benefits, including slowing down the signs of ageing,” per ScienceDaily.

What is entropy?

According to ScienceDaily entropy is “the general trend of the universe towards death and disorder.”

The study done from an entropy perspective suggests entropy changes can be triggered by tourism.

“Positive experiences might mitigate entropy increase and enhance health, while negative experiences may contribute to entropy increase and compromise health,” per ScienceDaily.

Who conducted the study?

The study “The Principle of Entropy Increase: A Novel View of How Tourism Influences Human Health” was conducted by researchers at Edith Cowan University, per Fox News. ECU is found outside Perth, Australia.

The lead researcher on the study was Fangli Hu, a Ph.D. candidate at ECU.

What are the effects of travel on health?

According to ScienceDaily, Hu said an individual’s physical and mental wellness could be enhanced through positive travel experiences including:

• Novel environments
• Engagement in physical activities
• Social interaction
• Fostering of positive emotions.

Positive travel experiences can help the body sustain a low-entropy state.

The researchers who conducted the study found that “travel therapy” could serve as a groundbreaking new health intervention when looked at through an entropy lens.

“Tourism typically exposes people to new surroundings and relaxing activities, and novel settings can stimulate stress responses and elevate metabolic rates, positively influencing metabolic activities and the body’s self-organising capabilities,” per ScienceDaily.

Travel contexts can also trigger an adaptive immune system response which improves the body’s ability to defend itself from external threats.

As Hu told Fox News, “Leisurely travel activities might help alleviate chronic stress, dampen over-activation of the immune system and encourage normal functioning of the self-defense system.”

Recreational travel activities could also release tension and fatigue in joints and muscles.

“This relief helps maintain the body’s metabolic balance and increases the anti-wear-and-tear system’s effectiveness,” Hu told ScienceDaily.

The aging process, according to Hu, is irreversible and can’t be stopped, but it can be slowed down.

All of the potential affects of “travel therapy” can contribute to slowing or delaying the aging process.

According to ScienceDaily there is also research to the contrary which has pointed out tourists can face challenges such as accidents, injuries, violence, infectious disease and safety issues with food and water.