New Study: Happiness Is The Same As Unhappiness - http://clapway.com/2015/12/11/new-study-happiness-is-the-same-as-unhappiness/

A new study disproves the belief that unhappiness has a direct effect on a person’s health, so there is no connection between happiness and quality of life. The researchers took data from the Million Woman Study conducted in the UK, which was conducted between 1996 to 2001.

Happiness Has No Relation to Disease or Early Death

The research initially assumed that people with the disease would report a higher amount of unhappiness, which was commonly associated with loneliness, lack of exercise and smoking. It was reported that women who get 8 hours of sleep or more are likelier to be happy.

Ten years later, though, the data didn’t look the same. 4% of the 32,000 who died after the study were not unhappier. Upon closer examination of the data, it turned out that women who were rated as unhappy died at the same rate as those who were happy. This included all kinds of death, related to disease or not.

Illness Makes People Unhappy, But Unhappiness Doesn’t Make People Ill

There were no direct links found between unhappiness and illness, not even in the ten-year study. Researchers claim that the connection stems only from a confusion of cause and effect. The study, extensive as it was, definitely eliminates unhappiness as being a cause of the increase in mortality for women.

Obviously, more research is needed to truly confirm this. There are always skeptics, even in this respect. There is some vagueness in the study itself since unhappiness and happiness are things that can’t be measured exactly. Further study could give the community more concrete hope. Though there’s no telling if a shorter study will truly bring the concrete results people are expecting. It’s also worth noting that the study focused on unhappiness, which probably should not be confused with depression. There will probably be more studies conducted in this respect, perhaps incorporating more demographics and all genders.

 

 

New Study: Happiness Is The Same As Unhappiness

New Study Finds Key To Happiness; it"s Not Money - http://clapway.com/2015/11/22/new-study-finds-key-to-happiness-its-not-money123/

A new study reveals that happiness could be the result of a build up of small instances of joy that pan out to a general feeling of overall satisfaction. This new research, courtesy of a team of Japanese researchers, will definitley encourage further study into what could now be called the ‘science’ of happiness.

Being Happy Means Vastly Different Things to Different People

While some keep focussed on product possessions, others seek self-help books, meditation and working out to stay positive and happy. This new study has some major ramifications for future study right into exactly what makes people feel happy, and provides people with instant recipes to joy.

An analysis of the outcomes showed that a higher mass of grey matter in the precuneus was linked with greater scores on the happiness surveys. The definition and formula for happiness is still quite blurry, but it might be just a fraction clearer thanks to this study. The team nevertheless stresses that a lot of further study is needed to really grasp the scope of this knowledge.

The Study Finds that Being Happy Comes from the Small Things

People who really feel joy and happiness with intensity have a bigger precuneus – a region in the medial parietal lobe that becomes energetic when experiencing consciousness, the conclusions showed. Psychotherapists have found that emotional elements like these as well as satisfactions of life with each other make up the subjective experience of being “happy”. Research study leader Wataru Sato believes recognizing that mechanism could possibly assist researchers quantify the degrees of joy objectively.

A Larger Precuneus Means a Happier Life

People were surveyed based on the intensity with which they felt emotion, and this data was then compared with MRI images of grey matter of the very subjects. People with larger precuneus were shown to have a higher emotional intensity and are more prone to ‘happiness’. The team went on to explain that the reason the precunus is larger is because it has more circulation of neurons.

 

New Study Finds Key To Happiness; it"s Not Money

And how you can, too! - http://clapway.com/2015/06/25/how-the-dutch-are-nailing-the-perfect-lifestyle/

Biking Like The Dutch Just Might Be The Answer!

The first thing people associate The Netherlands with is biking. It is not an exaggeration to say that bikes are the primary mean of transportation for almost every single Dutch, regardless of age or gender. In fact, in a country where bikes are more common than people and is geographically the flattest in Europe, it comes as no surprise. But biking just might be the answer!

Having lived in Utrecht, one of the country’s most charming cities and a suggested destination for anyone visiting The Netherlands, I have used my bike more than I used my feet or any other kind of transport mode. Night buses do not exist there, despite being one of the country’s biggest student cities, so biking back home after a night out is as normal for a Dutchie as a cup of coffee is for us every morning.

Recent findings from the country’s biggest university

The University of Utrecht is the largest higher education institution in The Netherlands, and a study from there recently discovered that Dutch bikers (or just the Dutch) live on average six months longer just because of their daily activity. Also, the study found out that in the Netherlands, as many as 11,000 premature deaths yearly are preventable thanks to biking.

The incredible infrastructure across the country makes biking extremely easy and it has become, throughout the years, a huge aspect of Dutch culture.

I often read articles on Denmark being a “bikers heaven”, but after moving to Jutland (one of the country’s regions) straight after living in Holland, I realised how those who think Denmark is the best country for biking have definitely not travelled to The Netherlands yet.

Biking also reduces polution

Biking has also other great benefits, such has reducing emissions in the atmosphere, contributing to greener and healthier environments. This has greater implications for bigger cities, where traffic is the biggest cause of air pollution. For this reason, mayors of large capitals such as London are pushing the use of bicycles and the development of proper infrastructure as much as possible. 

Cycling for a happier and healthier lifestyle

Also, very interestingly, one of the reasons why the countries in the north are considered among the happiest in the world (The Netherlands was ranked fourth last year), is because biking, as all sport activities do, triggers endorphins which are known for generating feelings of happiness in your body. Therefore, since this sport is a very big part of almost everyone’s daily life here, this could somehow explain why they are considered so happy on a world basis.

So as many of us are squashed on the subway every morning or running to catch the bus because we slept in, adopting a few tips for a healthier lifestyle from the Dutch might be a solution. And, why even compare a packed, stinky train carriage to the freedom of a morning bike ride?

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How The Dutch are Nailing the Perfect Lifestyle