Does spring make you excited? Does the sun make you feel happier?
Well, these feelings are valid, and in fact, they are scientifically proven. The sun does make you feel happier and comes with a ton of health benefits.
Over the course of the weeks where spring started to appear, I have felt a big shift in campus culture. Everywhere I turn, I see people hammocking, having a picnic, studying outside, or simply just soaking up the sun.
However, I had to ask why. What about the sunshine makes campus feel like a completely different space?
Sunlight in this case can actually cause the production of certain hormones in our bodies, including serotonin. Serotonin is a mood stabilizer hormone that can boost one’s mood and help to develop healthier sleeping patterns.
Furthermore, if we are not getting enough serotonin in our bodies, this may lead to SAD, or as we more commonly know it, seasonal depression. In the darker winter season, we are more prone to these feelings, which can also be known as the winter blues.
However, as we transition into longer and sunnier days, one can feel the warmth in their mood and overall well-being.
The benefits of sunshine include better mental health, lower blood pressure, healthier bones, and better sleep. Nonetheless, if you find yourself debating if you should go outside to soak up some sun, you can recharge by hammocking on the green or enjoying a picnic with friends.
Chantel Hartfield, Fortune Gerezgher, and Brodie Budzinski soak up the sun on the Green while enjoying some snacks, and studying. Sunlight is known to have tons of health benefits. In this case, the sun can allow us to produce serotonin, a hormone that can boost one’s mood. Samantha Lyon and Lauren Anacker laugh and converse as they hammock and enjoy the sunny weather. Aside from serotonin, sunlight can also lead to better sleep habits as it regulates the melatonin hormones in our bodies. Over the course of the spring season, students have filled the campus green with many different colored hammocks. As spring has arrived on campus, campus culture has gone through a big change. We know that sunlight can boost our serotonin levels however when we aren’t receiving enough serotonin our bodies can go through SAD otherwise known as seasonal depression. Hayly Oldfather and her cat, Caesar, lay out and enjoy the warm weather. If one is experiencing seasonal depression or the “winter blues,” these symptoms usually go away in the early spring days. Kate Lindsay and Will Chandler soak up the sun by hammocking on the green. Along with lack of sunlight, one may also be affected by the time change that occurs every fall and winter season. This time change confuses our internal clock due to the lack of sunlight. Sarah Malone and her dog, Hobbs, get some sun while out on a walk. Although natural sunlight is more beneficial, phototherapy or light therapy can be used when we aren’t getting enough sun, which can lessen the effects of SAD. Aside from sunlight helping lessen the symptoms of SAD, the sun has many other benefits as well. These benefits include lower blood pressure, healthier bones, better sleep habits, and most importantly better mental health. So if you are looking for a reason to get out and enjoy the sunny weather, what are you waiting for?
