How the Sunshine Affects Your Mood

Have you ever noticed that your mood can improve when sunshine hits your skin? There’s a good reason for that – sunlight does amazing things for you!

Sunshine and “Feel Good” Hormones
The human body responds to sunlight and darkness. Both trigger the release of hormones, which are chemicals that help pass messages between the brain and the body. When exposed to sunlight, your body releases specific hormones that uplift your mood. As the sun goes down, darkness triggers the release of other hormones.

Sunlight stimulates the production of serotonin, which is a “feel good” hormone that uplifts your mood and helps you feel calm, and focused. Specifically, when sunshine hits the light-sensitive retina in the back of your eyes, it cues the brain to make serotonin.

It gets dark at sundown, of course, and the absence of sunlight also triggers the production of other hormones, like melatonin. Darkness causes your brain to produce melatonin, which is the hormone that makes you feel sleepy. As you probably know, nothing makes or breaks a good mood like a good night’s sleep.

Sunshine Boosts Your Mood in Other Ways
Exposure to sunlight increases your vitamin D levels, which help support your immune system and promote healthy bones – which can put you in a great mood!

The next time you need to improve your mood, just step outside and enjoy some sunshine!