As clouds cover the horizon, someone who longs to be active in sunlight may feel disappointed—looking out the window and searching for a reason to find joy in the dreary weather.
Approximately 10 million people nationwide suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), which is characterized by suffering from seasonal depression when the weather is typically more gloomy or cloudy.
“The mental health changes throughout the seasons. Especially in spring and summer, the energy levels and people’s personalities will shift,” AP Psychology teacher Miss Gasenica said. “They become more energized and excited because they have more to look forward to when the sun is out.”
Hormonal fluctuations and behavioral changes, such as varying levels of sunlight exposure, influence the human body’s response to weather. Yet when some people are exposed to too much sunlight, they tend to be more tired.
“A lack of sunlight [can] impact how we sleep,” Gasenica said. “[The human] bodies release [a hormone called] melatonin while we sleep. [So] when [a person] spends more time in the sun, it makes [them] sleepier because the brain is tricked [within this process that it] needs to re-energize and stop reusing the melatonin.”
People who are prone to SAD, according to Psychology Today, introduce themselves to therapies that increase their body’s exposure to light, which provides comfort within the body as well, through the melatonin produced.
“When [someone] is living with depression, red light therapy is used as a form of treatment, especially in the Northwest when the sun is barely present throughout the day,” Gasenica said. “They also use sunlight therapy to trick the brain [into releasing] certain neurotransmitters from the hormone when it’s light [outside], and changes the brain’s activity.”
Regarding students who prefer to be tanning at the beach with a UV of 10 out, there is a significant amount of behavioral changes that all ages experience when they don’t have access to sunlight.
“From a teacher’s perspective, seeing kids when it is sunny out, they’re much more outgoing in terms of engagement in class, whereas when it’s cold out, they just want to nap [in class],” Gasenica said.
Overall, according to the National Library of Medicine, the average person in modern society appreciates when the sun is more present throughout the day, and the temperature is within a warm spectrum. All around, the proof of change made within the human body’s behavior and hormones shows a significant toll that affects people’s perception of the weather.
