Ho ho ho, no. Hey guys, Matt here for Science or Fiction.
Well, it's that time of year again.
'Tis the season for seasonal affective disorder.
When millions of people get the gift of being bummed out and feel like Santa is stuck in
their emotional chimney.
Now here's how seasonal affective disorder works: Well then why do we feel this way?
Come on! Guys you gotta tell me what we're going to put in this before we start recording, ok? Thank you.
Seasonal affective disorder or S.A.D., yes SAD: The idea that our moods may be, at least
in part, solar powered.
When the weather gets dim, cold, and gloomy, millions of people start thinking about adding
antidepressants to their Christmas wish list.
Or maybe they don't.
Because some publications have claimed that this seasonal affective thing isn't
really a thing at all--that previous studies might have been asking leading questions, or that there could
have been confirmation bias for S.A.D. among people, and researchers.
So who's right?
Well, these anti-seasonal affective disorder headlines are referencing a CDC study that
analyzed over 34,000 American adults' answers to a depression-related survey.
This analysis did not find correlation between seasons and increased levels of depression,
nor did they find greater rates of depression in higher latitudes at which there's less
daylight and more cold--more winter, if you will.
But there are some problems with this analysis.
In the research claiming S.A.D. is a myth, they studied phone surveys, which could be
problem when you think about how depression can affect people's social interactions.
In other words, people with seasonal affective disorder may be less interested in participating
in a survey concerning their emotional well being than people who don't experience S.A.D.
I mean imagine getting a phone call asking how you feel while experiencing depression?
Probably not as excited to talk as someone who's all sunshine and rainbows.
Ugh, you again.
There's also a lot of stigma around mental health, so talking to a non-health professional
in a non-personal phone call may have incentivized people to lie.
I mean, look, I've lied about my TV-viewing habits in a Nielsen survey because I was embarrassed
to say that I watch reality TV dance competitions.
That Viennese waltz was so beautiful.
You can't count out the football players.
So, basically, we can't say for sure that seasons definitely don't have mental effects on people.
In fact, other studies have shown that seasons not only affect mood, but can also affect
your brain and even your genes.
For example: One group of scientists ran a study that took on the challenge of studying
the impact of seasons on our brain while trying to control for any seasonal or daytime cues.
That involved days of sleep deprivation, light deprivation, sound deprivation, and quarantining
participants away from the outside world for 4.5 days, a task that was then repeated at
different times of the year.
What the researchers found was that the participants' brain activity peaked for memory tasks in
the autumn and tanked in the spring.
And for attention tasks, neurological activity was higher in the summer and lower in the winter.
This despite having all of those summer/winter cues supposedly controlled for in their creepy
deprivation chamber.
I'm just assuming it was creepy.
In another study, scientists found that people's genes are affected by the changing seasons.
In that research, they saw that the genes responsible for controlling immunity and inflammation
were more active in colder, winter months.
Our very genetic makeup is affected by seasons!
Now with all this cool data on how seasons affect our genes and brains, which could be a whole
other awesome video, we can't rule out seasons affecting our mood quite yet.
But if you're feeling sad at the moment, maybe try to find ways to relieve it now instead
of just waiting for spring.
But what about you? Do you think seasonal affective disorder is real?
Or just a fun way to rename depression for December. You know the way we rename coniferous trees
to Christmas trees?
Was this a weird way to wish you Merry Christmas and happy holidays?
Maybe.
But happy holidays?
You know what gets me into the holiday spirit.
Finding out about the possibility of alien life.
No really.
Check out this video here to see what I mean.
Don't forget to subscribe, and keep coming back to Seeker for more videos.
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