More than 16% of the world's population live in the countryside and although this

percentage is low comparing that to the city a lot of people might say that this 16% of
the population is living a better life. Have you ever asked yourself why the people who
live in the countryside are much happier, relaxed and healthy? What if I told you that
their simplicity of living the biggest factor.
To begin with, there is a quote by a writer named William Penn that says: “The
country life is to be preferred, for there we see the works of God; but in cities little
else but the works of men. And the one makes a better subject for contemplation than
the other." This quote concludes almost all the advantages and disadvantages of living
in the countryside. Life in the city is quite chaotic whereas in the countryside
everything goes with the flow and just like this one benefit, other benefits of living in
the countryside are well established. Researchers show that living in the countryside
plays a huge role on our mental and physical health. Let's take the pollution as an
example: the more we get into the countryside the more the quality of the air improves.
One big factor why this happens is the fact that the number of cars, factories etc. is
much lower than in the city therefore the number of the people who have lung
problems, asthma or heat diseases is much lower too.
Secondly living in the countryside plays a big role in our mental health as well. Living
in the city can stimulate two harmful and key regions of the brain, and this makes us
feel more anxious, stressed and depressed. In rural areas, the brain is less likely to get
any such trouble resulting in a lesser number of mood and anxiety disorders. Research
also shows that people living in the city are showing increasing chances of
schizophrenia risk due to the increasing amount of pollution.
Thirdly cities are more expensive than the countryside to live in. From my point of view
the people in the country have to pay much less for everything starting from groceries,
healthcare to transportation. Also in rural areas, people have to pay less for housing
than people in urban areas and also the taxes for any kind of properties are much less
when compared to the taxes in the city.
Despite the huge benefits we told there are some disadvantages too such as
unemployment that comes due to the lack of businesses and industries which leaves the
people choose farming as a way to make profits. Transportation can be an issue if you
do not have a car to move around. The high-class medical facilities, higher education,
shopping malls, and colleges is also a matter of concern for the people living in rural
areas for the main reason that they are not accessible and also internet and television
services can be difficult to get and sometimes they can be weak in the village areas.
To sum up everything the benefits that are found in the countryside are numerous.
Between life in the country side and in the city will always be some trade-offs, but if
you can get enough of the benefits in the countryside, then it is worth giving it a shot
and will definitely outweigh the minor inconveniences of the rural areas.

Samanta Kreka