Sunlight.
It’s truly the life energy source for our world.
Without sunlight, plants could not exist.
Life wouldn’t even exist—because our world would be far too cold to support even the most simple of lifeforms.
But sunlight also plays a more complex role in our human experience.
It helps us to be happier, healthier, and stronger.
How?
Well, this Healthline article really helps to paint that picture.
So let’s delve into it and talk about it.
It Mostly Has To Do With Our Hormone Levels
On our planet, most people experience a combination of darkness (while the sun is hidden beyond the horizon) and sunlight (while the sun is visible overhead).
These natural cycles have become a foundationally important element in our own biological rhythmic processes.
For example, exposure to sunlight is believed to increase the brain’s release of a hormone called serotonin.
Serotonin is essential for many different things. But most importantly, it’s associated with boosting a person’s mood, and helping them to feel calm and focused.
But darkness also triggers the release of a hormone called melatonin.
Melatonin is the hormone responsible for helping you fall into a peaceful, restful night’s sleep—which is vitally important to your basic health and wellness as well.
These Cycles Are Important For Our Health And Happiness
See, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to observe that our bodies seemed to have acclimated to these natural cycles of light and dark in a very foundational way.
And it has also been shown that without sufficient sun exposure, our serotonin levels can dip.
This puts you at risk for a number of different issues, including depression.
One particular type of depression, called seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, is a type of depression that’s specifically related to changes in the season.
And it most commonly occurs in the winter—when the days grow shorter and darker, when there tends to be more cloud cover, etc.
We Interviewed A Person Who Suffers From SAD
We actually managed to interview someone who tends to suffer from seasonal depression. And he told us that his experiences in the winter (in the Midwest United States) were very different from those in the summer.
“In the winter, I’ve come to just expect that I’m going to feel sadder, more depressed, more isolated, etc. That’s just how it is, and I know that it has something to do with all of the cloudy, wet, cold, rainy weather we get.
In the summer, it’s different. I wake up early, I open up the windows, and that warm summer air, bright sunlight, and blue sky really help me to feel alive, happy, and hopeful. I’ve really noticed it. I pretty much brace myself for those ‘cold weather blues’ every year. It’s just something that I’ve come to expect. And I think it all has to do with sunlight (or a lack of it), and how cold weather keeps me from going outside to experience it as much as I do in the summer.”
In Conclusion
There you have it.
Some information about how the sunlight makes us happy—that really goes back to science.
At the end of the day, it seems to make sense.
If you get out and spend some more time in the sunlight, you’re just that much more likely to feel happy.
So make sure to get at least a little bit of sun today!