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by Gabrielle Bauer Lifestyle YOUR BRAIN ON GOOD WEATHER This is the last article in a four-part series exploring how heading south improves health. Here, we explain what the snowbird life does to your mind and mood. It seems obvious, doesn’t it? Sun and warmth lift our spirits, while grey skies and glacial winds bring us down. We express this intuition when we turn up the heating before welcoming guests into our house − something which 40 per cent of us tend to do − and when we head outdoors on the first sunny day after a week of rain. As it happens, the science aligns perfectly with our gut feelings. In fact, the strongest support for the health benefits of good weather comes from studies of sun and mood. An Australian study that measured brain chemicals found that people had higher levels of serotonin (a neurotransmitter known to boost mood) on bright, sunny days than on cloudy ones. A possible explanation for this effect: sunlight cues special areas in the retina that trigger serotonin release. Another study found that people’s moods rise the most when the temperature changes dramatically − exactly what happens when you leave a snow-blown airport and land amid swaying palm trees. And if you lean toward pessimism, you’ll feel a greater lift from the weather change than if you’re the positive type to begin with. To reap the benefits of good weather on mood, you need to spend at least 30 minutes of the day outside − not difficult to do in the destinations favoured by snowbirds. Heading south also helps you shake off stress, because your body produces less of the stress hormone when you’re out and about in the sun. It’s no surprise that seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a type of depression linked to the time of year, usually strikes in the fall or winter. It’s not so much the cold as the lack of winter sun that triggers the condition. In addition to reducing levels of mood-lifting neurotransmitters, sun deprivation may throw the sleep-wake cycle out of whack, leaving you grumpier in the daytime hours. The further you live from the equator, whether it’s Timmins or Tierra del Fuego, the greater the chances of developing SAD. If you live in the Northern hemisphere and travel south for the winter, you bring yourself closer to the equator and farther away from SAD territory. Same goes for temperature: According to data from the World Values Survey, the further you veer from 18°C (65°F), the less satisfied you feel about life. When you head to the tropics during the cold months, you narrow this temperature gap. Another study identified 22°C (72°F) as the optimal temperature for mood − not far from Florida’s average high temperatures in January. This same study, which involved 1.7 million U.S. subjects, concluded that the weather can mould our very personality. Living in towns that boast the 22°C average, it would seem, makes people more agreeable, extroverted and emotionally stable. Mental health also includes mental performance, and research suggests that warmer weather keeps you more alert and less likely to forget things. In a University of Michigan study, researchers divided the 600 subjects into three groups: one group was assigned to spend time outdoors during warm and sunny days, another group to head out on inclement days, and a third group to stay inside. In addition to reporting a better mood, the first group outperformed the others on memory tests. It gets even better: the same study found that spending time in warm weather broadens people’s “cognitive style,” meaning that they become more open to new information and creative thoughts. Better mood, sharper memory, more creative juices…what’s not to like?While the coronavirus pandemic may put some of our migratory patterns on hold, we can look forward to better times and better moods as we start heading south again. CSANews | SUMMER 2020 | 17

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