What sort of interest is there on daylight savings? We’ve been saving for ages, but we’ve never spent any. These colder fall and winter months include not only a break from the heat of July and August, but also a break from the long and bright days of summer. Days when it’s easy to get out and breathe some fresh air, get in some physical activity, and generally feel better and happier. Not to mention that precious sunlight converting certain cholesterols in the skin into the vitally important vitamin D. Studies have shown for ages that mood and health decline along with the colder months. This begs the question “why do we roll back our clocks and lose an entire hour of precious daylight?” Though you and I may have been asking that question for a long time, researchers from the UK are asking it now and they’re being heard much more loudly and clearly than we.

Mayer Hillman of London’s Policy Studies Institute suggests that daylight savings doesn’t actually save anything. In fact, it eliminates “about 300 additional hours of daylight for adults each year, and 200 more for children.” He published a report on Friday 10/29/2010 online in the British Medical Journal that details studies that demonstrated people’s general decline in mood and energy levels in the shorter days of winter. Even if the extended daylight hour didn’t spur more people into exercising more, it would likely help toward a decline of other known conditions related to the darker winter months: poor mood and depression.

Dr. Robert Graham of New York’s Lenox Hill Hospital agrees with the idea on the basis of vitamin D’s importance. He stated that “Lessons learned by the explosion of research on the benefits of vitamin D add to the argument for not putting the clocks back.”

Up to 20% of Americans experience a form of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) through the winter months. It is a type of depression and in many cases is linked to changes in the amount of daylight at different times of year. It can lead to changes in appetite, fatigue, weight gain, anxiety, and even avoidance of social situations. It is thought that winter onset SAD is caused by the body’s reaction to less sunlight, which is another good reason for keeping that extra hour of light.

Doctors will often also prescribe medications to deal with SAD, but as is often the case…the best answers can be found in nature.

Learn a word a day
Pick out a word from the newspaper or dictionary every day. Put it on an index card and quiz yourself occasionally. It may not sound like much, but this type of exercise keeps your brain sharp. The brain continues to regenerate nerve cells throughout your entire life, and this process called neurogenesis helps older adults to improve memory and cognitive function as they age. If learning a new word doesn’t appeal to you, try something challenging that’s more your style like reading history books or learning chess. People who have stayed true to this daily learning have been able to recover as much as 20 years of memory power.

Reconnect
Over the last 10 years countless studies have been published showing that people in happy marriages have healthier and longer lives. Some even showed decline in things like heart disease and cholesterol based upon their relationship status. Emotional connections don’t just appear, they require work to maintain. Take the time out to reestablish some of these relationships that you’ve lost. It can be as simple as writing an email or picking up the phone, and it can add years to your life.

Climb the stairs
In a study of 5,000 people over age 70, all participants had some sort of physical limitation, but the ones who got even minimal exercise were 55% less likely to develop more serious physical issues like severe joint pain or muscle weakness. Minimal exercise in this instance was defined as the equivalent of walking a mile in a week, so even the little movements can add up to a great preventative degree.

Stop and smell the flowers
60% of all doctor visits are for stress related issues. Take some time out to remember that the world doesn’t have to be rushed through. For some people it’s as simple as a few minutes of contact with the natural world, even 5 minutes of watching birds at the feeder can have a restorative effect. Nature has a way of restoring our equilibrium, so take a deep breath and relax.

Home Hiccup Cure
Here’s a tip from one of our customers:  Nancy says “take a teaspoon of honey, agave nectar, or sugar and hold it in the mouth for less than a minute.  The hiccup just disappears.  Don’t know why, it just does.”  Thanks for the tip Nancy, more people suffer from hiccups than most people realize.

Trouble Sleeping
Your body needs the essential amino acid tryptophan in order to make serotonin and melatonin which help control your mood and sleep patterns.  If you don’t have enough tryptophan, you won’t be able to make enough serotonin or melatonin, and you may start to feel depressed or have trouble sleeping.  The easiest way to get tryptophan is by eating it.  It’s contained in many dairy products, fruits, and lean meats.  Ever wonder why Thanksgiving dinner is so nap inducing?  Turkey is very high in tryptophan.

Chocolate is Good for Your Heart
It sounds too good to be true, but evidence in recent years has been mounting steadily.  Dark chocolate especially is an excellent source of antioxidants.  A 2006 study among Dutch men showed that the ones who ate more foods made from or containing cocoa had lower blood pressure and their risk of death was 50% lower than those who ate little or no chocolate.

I “Swear” This Works
Ever wonder why people are more likely to utter expletives when in pain?  Recent research from Keele University in England suggests that swearing originates in the right hemisphere of the brain, and is more aligned with emotion than language.  It triggers adrenaline, and increases aggression, which in turn downplays pain and weakness.  So, depending on the company you keep don’t be afraid to let it out the next time you stub your toe.