Getting out into nature and
working the land is an excellent cure for stress, Coldiretti
farmers' group said in response to singer Sting's decision to
offer guests at his Tuscan villa the chance to pay to harvest
grapes and olives there, according to the Telegraph online.
For the price of 262 euros a day, visitors to Il Palagio
will be given a short lesson on harvesting and an empty basket
which they can fill by picking olives and participating in the
annual grape harvest, ending the day by tasting Sting's "Message
in a Bottle" Sangiovese wine at 15.70 euros a glass.
Coldiretti cited several studies that show the positive
health benefits of these types of "agri-cures," including one by
the Sage Colleges in New York demonstrating that a bacteria
found in agricultural soil produces serotonin, the so-called
"good mood" hormone, when injected into lab rats.
The farmers' group also said that more and more Italian
agritourism businesses, which now number beyond 20,000, are
beginning to offer new forms of therapy for natural relaxation,
from tree-hugging to walking blindfolded with bare feet over
grass, a practice known as "earthing".
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