Feeling down? Get happy, dammit!

Get healthy
It’s no secret that exercising and eating well can make us feel better — what's new is proof that it doesn't take much.

Work it. "A brisk five- to ten-minute walk is all you need to get a mood benefit. No sweat required," says Robert Thayer, professor of psychology at California State University Long Beach. Experts say there are a host of factors at play, including the unleashing of the feel-good neurotransmitters  serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain; psychologically, it allows for a break from the stress in your life. "You get the best effect from outdoor exercise — and there's not a big difference between sunny and cloudy days," says Thomas Plante, professor of psychology at Santa Clara University. Another argument for getting out of the gym: "We tend to do a lot of social comparison in that environment and end up more depressed." Plante also discovered that listening to music can maximize the mood-improving capacity of exercise.

Breathe deeply. Exercise that is rhythmic, repetitive, noncompetitive, and involves diaphragmatic breathing (from your belly) yields the biggest mental payoff, says Kate Hays, a sports psychologist in Toronto, Canada. Yoga has the additional benefit of increasing levels of GABA (a neurotransmitter associated with happy, calm feelings) and lowering levels of cortisol, a hormone associated with stress.

Go fishing. "Almost everyone in our society is deficient in fish oil [omega-3 fatty acids], which has powerful effects on brain function and mood," says Andrew Weil, director of the program in integrative medicine at the University of Arizona. In fact, omega-3s can have a greater positive effect on mood than prescription antidepressants, according to an independent analysis of studies that were conducted by the American Psychiatric Association. Try to eat oily, cold-water fish three times a week, and take a fish-oil supplement (Weil recommends two or three grams daily). Make sure the supplement contains both EPA and DHA, the two most critical omega-3s, says Joseph Hibbeln, a lipid biochemist and psychiatrist at NIH.

The pleasure principle Think your life is rougher than that guy's in the next cubicle? You might be right. A recent study by Princeton economist Alan Krueger and several psychologists found that over the past four decades, men have, on average, gradually increased activities that they enjoy and pared down those they find unpleasant. Women, however, spend almost the same amount of time on disagreeable tasks. Women used to spend 40 more minutes a week doing unpleasant chores than a typical man; today the divide is 90 minutes. Narrow the gap yourself — whether with a new pair of shoes or a work-free week. "Depressed people often find they're devoting a lot of time to things that don't give them pleasure. They just need to change how they divide their days," says Todd Kashdan, professor of psychology at George Mason University. "Everyone says, 'Well, I know that,' but most people aren't doing it." He suggests making an actual list of things that you find the most pleasurable, so you focus on doing them more often.

Enjoy fats. Studies have shown that a diet with less than 25 percent of its total calories from fat can raise anxiety, frustration, and anger, says Susan Kleiner, a sports-nutrition consultant in Mercer Island, Washington. The best mood enhancers: monounsaturated fats (like avocado, olive oil, and nuts).

Drink up. It's simple enough: Dehydration makes you lethargic, and water restores energy levels. We're typically most dehydrated when we wake up, so two eight-ounce glasses are a good antidote for morning gloom. A recent study also found that water can make exercise more pleasurable: Subjects who drank water before getting on a treadmill and then every 20 minutes during their workouts reported that their moods rose and remained better afterward.

Set a happy scene
Even your physical surroundings can change your mind.

Create a greenhouse effect. If you foresee a stressful period, buy yourself flowers. In a recent study, 27 women were sent fresh flowers; another group received scented candles. "Within a week, the women who got the flowers reported feeling less anxious, less depressed, more compassionate at home, and more enthusiastic at work," says Nancy Etcoff, director of the Program in Aesthetics and Well-Being at Harvard. She attributes the lift to our innate human attraction to vegetation, once a signal of food and water.

Add background music. "Music can affect the pleasure center of the brain, the same area activated when you have an orgasm," says neuroscientist Daniel Levitin, a professor of psychology at McGill University. And the positive effect can last even after the music is over — as long as you're listening to something you like.

Take a whiff. As with music, smelling any scent appeals to you (whether it’s gasoline or Diptyque’s Figuier candle) can improve your mood. The areas of the brain that process olfaction and emotion are linked, so the functioning of one area directly affects the other, explains Rachel Herz, visiting assistant professor in the department of psychiatry and human behavior at Brown University Medical School. After we're exposed to a scent for about 20 minutes, we no longer smell it — but the good mood will stick around.

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