Alpine Pastures & Health

Building on a centuries-old tradition, alpine pastures in the province of Salzburg play an important role, especially in the regional economic and tourist aspect, due to 1,800 actively managed alpine pastures. Looking at alpine pastures from a health perspective, a significant potential in the health sector can be identified: Alpine pastures offer a multitude of health-promoting factors. In addition to the clean air, vitamin D build-up, altitude and the promotion of exercise, there is a new scientific hypothesis that the high biodiversity of microorganisms in alpine pastures (the alpine pasture microbiome – consisting of bacteria, fungi and archaeae) has an anti-inflammatory and health-promoting effect via complex immunological control loops.

In the project “Alpine pastures and health” the Research Studio iSPACE, the Paracelsus Medical Private University Salzburg (PMU) and the University of Salzburg (PLUS) are jointly investigating the effects of a stay in an alpine pasture on the health of city dwellers.

Microbiome research has influenced the understanding of health and disease over the last decade more than almost any other topic. According to the current state of science, it is above all the diversity of the microbiome – i.e. the totality of all microorganisms that are socialised with the human body – that appears to play the greatest role in keeping people healthy. Enabling a lively exchange between the human microbiome and microbes from the environment is fundamental in view of the constant urbanisation, which increasingly reduces the spectrum of microorganisms and at the same time increases the risk of diseases such as allergies, asthma, autoimmune diseases or diseases of civilisation.

Due to the diversity of this habitat, the Alpine natural environment, especially alpine pastures, offer an enormous future health potential. The project aims to analyse the alpine microbiome of different types of alpine pastures in Salzburg and to create an innovative basis for the positioning of alpine pastures as health-promoting living and recreation areas by means of the differences between alpine and urban microbiome. The typification is based on natural geographic aspects such as climate, topography and land cover as well as on the type of farming and the number of upwelling areas. Based on this, a clinical study on the effect of a stay in an alpine pasture and its specific microbiome on the health of city dwellers will be conducted. The overall objective of the project is to build up a regional innovation competence for the sustainable valorisation of alpine pastures as health-promoting living and recreational areas.

The project contributes to increasing the attractiveness of Salzburg’s natural and cultural environment as a place to work, live and relax, while integrating science and innovation. In addition, the foundations for follow-up projects and for the development of new tourist offers are being created. The synergies of health tourism and agriculture or alpine pasture management lead to the development of innovative sustainable value chains with short transport routes and regional economic cycles.

Read also the current press report on the project:

DIE PRESSE, 31.10.2020 
„Fördert „Almbaden“ die Gesundheit?”