Green Space and Infectious Diseases

Environmental characteristics could strongly influence the occurrence and the spread of infectious diseases. There is growing studies on environmental factors associated with various infectious diseases, but the associations between green space and infectious diseases were seldom investigated until recent years. This chapter synthesized findings regarding associations between green space and infectious diseases in China and the rest of the world. When summarizing relevant studies, we found limited studies in relevant topic with inconsistent findings in both China and the rest of the world. We encouraged researchers to conduct longitudinal observational studies with individual data because most of the studies were conducted using ecological study design. Natural experiments are also needed to confirm the potential effects of improving green space on the prevention or the transmission of infectious diseases.