04 Jul 11 Happiness Facts You Really Should Know
via Bustle by Erica Florentine
Who doesn’t want to be happy? Likely, no one will raise his or her hand for that one. I’m not sure about you, but I spend a lot of time thinking about happiness and its intricacies. Some scientific facts about happiness have struck me as particularly interesting. I’ve rounded them up for you here, and hopefully you’ll find them to be as intriguing as I do.
I used to always think that people are either the type to be generally happy, or are the type to be generally unhappy, and that there was little that fell in between. The truth is that there is a whole lot more to the emotion of happiness than that. They are so many subtopics to consider when we think of happiness. For instance, there are benefits happiness can have on our bodies. They are also different ways to discuss by which we can achieve happiness. Oppositely, there are times of the year that trigger unhappiness, and colors that trigger it too. Happiness, overall, is such a complex notion that it’s been studied up and down for years. What does that mean for us? That we’re now equipped with plenty of scientific bits of information on happiness that are soundly based in research, and that can help us all to better understand what it really means to be happy. Put on a smile, grab a seat, and let’s talk all things happiness. Here are 11 scientific facts about happiness that you’ll want to know.
1. Happiness Has Power Over Your Immune System
Being happy doesn’t just sound like a pleasant thing, it can be a pleasant thing for our bodies, too. Specifically, happiness can help boost our immune systems. Research published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine found people who have more positive emotions are less likely to develop the common cold. Just one of about a million reasons to put a smile on your face today.
2. Doing Good For Others Means Doing Good For Yourself
When it comes to happiness, by making others happy we can make ourselves happy, too. According to the Huffington Post, performing good deeds is one of the fastest ways to get some happiness into our own lives. The outlet noted multiple studies have shown people who donate to charities, for instance, will feel happier thanks to a trigger of feelings of reward. The studies go on to find the brain is then also encouraged to do more good things.
3. Some Extent Of Happiness Is Inherited
If you’ve ever assumed happiness is something that’s completely in your own control, think again. According to researchers from the University of Minnesota, a portion of your happiness is inherited. The researchers performed a study on pairs of identical twins, and found that at any given time about half of their happiness was correlated to genetics…
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