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How a Good Mood Can Affect Your Life

It’s one thing to say it is good to be in a positive mood, but it is quite another to understand why being in a good mood is important to your health. I’ve given you some tips on how to get yourself in a good mood, as well as things you can eat and watch to help out, but here is bit of an explanation as to why a good mood can benefit your overall health and well being. As it turns out, there is more to it than just feeling happy for the sake of feeling happy.

Rose-Colored Glasses

When one is described as having a good disposition or is usually in a good mood, they are said to see the world “through rose-colored glasses.” Essentially, this just means that these people see things in a more positive light. Now, a University of Toronto study has provided reason enough to believe that people who see through rose-colored glasses may actually see more than others. So how did they go about finding this out? Here’s some info from an article on Science Daily:

To focus their attention on the central image, subjects were asked to identify the gender of the person’s face. When in a bad mood, the subjects did not process the images of places in the surrounding background. However, when viewing the same images in a good mood, they actually took in more information — they saw the central image of the face as well as the surrounding pictures of houses.

So seeing the world through rose-colored glasses can actually allow you to see MORE than others. This is a great reason in itself to find your good mood. A good mood can equal more awareness, and therefore allow you to see things you might not have noticed otherwise. Ever heard the expression “stop and smell the roses?” Well, first you have to know the roses are there, and seeing the world from a good mood perspective can make a huge difference.

A Good Mood is Good Fuel

I’ve told you all about how exercise can help to improve your mood, but as it turns out, doing exercise can do more than just give you a mood boost – it can have long lasting effects on your well being. If you are tired of mood swings, it is possible to get yourself to a place where consistent exercise can not only help balance you physically, but mentally as well. According to an article on USA Today, research has found that one’s good mood can be maintained long after exercising.

The researchers found that people in the exercise group experienced a significant improvement in mood immediately after the exercise. They also had improved moods after two, four, eight and 12 hours compared with the people who didn't exercise, says Jeremy Sibold, an assistant professor in the university's Department of Rehabilitation and Movement Science.

The article goes on to explain that research like this provides just the kind of evidence that not only links exercise to a good mood, but actually goes beyond to show what a powerful tool exercise is to fight off stress and mood swings. So remember that a good mood is not only important so that you feel good mentally, but physically as well. Why is a good mood important to you personally? Share your thoughts in the comments.