GOOD WEATHER GOOD MOOD

Everyone has complained of having the winter blues and for those of us caught in those ice storms, we also know how fast we all got in a bad mood sitting around trying to play Monopoly with a flashlight.

So what are the winter blues and why are we bringing this up now? Well, weather can drastically affect your mood and the heat is making us a bit crabby. After all, we are a stormchase team without a storm; as my Dad used to say, “All dressed up and nowhere to go”!

The winter blues, if you can remember several months ago, can leave you feeling low, almost depressed. It also leaves you feeling as though you have a lot less energy than normal.

Did you know that there is actually a disorder called “Seasonal Affective Disorder”? Shockingly, many Americans suffer from this disorder! Scientists have also found that weather can affect your memory!

Now, what were we talking about?

Oh yeah. Weather.

In a study conducted at the University of Michigan, researchers divided participants into three groups. Participants either spent time indoors, spent time outside during unpleasant weather, or spent time outdoors in nice weather.

The researchers discovered again that mood and memory are affected by the weather. More specifically, most Americans who spent time outside in 72 degree weather experienced more pleasant mood and improved memory than those who spent time indoors or those who spent time outside during unpleasant weather. It was also discovered that participants experienced more depressed mood and no memory improvement if they spent time outdoors in temperatures significantly below or above 72 degrees.

The same result was found for those individuals who spent time indoors on nice days. The researchers hypothesized individuals who remain indoors on pleasant weather days become bored or resentful indoors. Finally, the University of Michigan study revealed participants needed to spend at least one half hour outdoors on nice days in order to achieve better mood and improved memory.

Given this information, we can assume that Americans can easily improve their mood and memory. Spending a mere half hour outdoors on nice days is pretty easy to do. Try eating luch outside every once in a while, play at the park with your kids, take a walk with your wife or walk your dog. It doesn’t take much to improve your mood!

These activities are proven to improve your mood and possibly your memory!

Now, on the flip side of things…did we really need a study to tell us that a beautiful day improves your mood?

This weekend is going to be hot, but nice days will come soon enough. Take advantage of them as much as you can.