Good Dirt: The Benefits of Mud Play and Where to Get Started

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‘Kids are right — puddle jumping and mud play are not just fun, they’re also good for you.

How mud play boosts health - Playing in mud isn’t just fun, it boosts health. Research shows that it strengthens the body’s immune system. According to the “hygiene hypothesis,” first proposed by epidemiologist David Strachan in 1989, children raised in extremely clean environments, who have little exposure to the bacteria, viruses and parasites typically found in mud and soil, may be more likely to develop allergies and asthma. 

Other studies, including a 2016 study published in The New England Journal of Medicine, report that children raised on farms are significantly less likely to develop asthma than children who are not. A 2010 study by Northwestern University in Chicago, following thousands of children in the Philippines over 21 years, reports that when children are exposed to germs and pathogens during infancy, their risk of developing cardiovascular inflammation and autoimmune diseases in adulthood is reduced.

Surprisingly, outdoor activities such as playing in mud may also improve eyesight. Longitudinal studies from the Children of the ’90s project in the United Kingdom found that children who spend more time outdoors at age 8 are less likely to become nearsighted by the age of 15.

Children’s mental health also gets a boost from dirt and mud play. A study from the U.K., jointly conducted by Bristol University and University College London, found that the friendly bacteria in soil activates neurons responsible for producing the brain chemical serotonin — which is a natural mood stabilizer. A 2004 study from the American Journal of Public Health reported that ADHD symptoms lessened in children within minutes of seeing green spaces.

Squish, shape, imagine, play - Children know instinctively that mud is a wonderful, open-ended material for play and learning. During unstructured, outdoor play, children form ideas, solve problems and think critically. Mud is an abundant and cost-free material, so children can practice science and math by exploring its properties, experimenting, manipulating and navigating. I’ve seen preschool-age children, for example, dig trenches in the mud patch to make water flow from one hole to another. They work together to determine the best place to dig and change plans if it doesn’t turn out as expected.

As an open-ended, creative material, mud also stimulates artistic expression and imagination.

Plus, while kids are squishing around outdoors, they naturally challenge themselves to become more adventurous. And as one of the most basic elements of the earth, mud allows children to develop an appreciation for the environment as they experience its diversity.’ (Source)

“Exactly!” Red Rabbit thinks to himself. “I wonder if there are lots of parents that don’t let their children get dirty.”

He continues to search for more articles.

Let’s continue - Mud, Marvelous Mud!

Start at the beginning – Let’s play in the mud!