I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Lauri Wakefield, who hosts the Inspiring Journeys podcast, to talk about living toxin-free.
Our discussion covered a ton of topics related to living toxin-free, and how that can help you improve your breast health, including:
How to reduce toxin exposure
The importance of self-education
Thermography vs. mammograms
Practical tips for a toxin-free lifestyle
Detoxification and hormonal balance
Endocrine disruptors and environmental toxins
So, if you want to know how to live a toxin-free life, and how that can benefit your breast health, then you don’t want to miss this informative episode, which you can listen to using the player below.
Dry brushing is a wellness practice that involves using a natural bristle brush to gently massage the skin in circular motions before taking a shower or bath. The practice has been around for centuries and is believed to have originated in ancient Ayurvedic medicine.
The benefits of dry brushing are numerous and include:
Exfoliation: Dry brushing helps to remove dead skin cells, revealing smoother and softer skin.
Improved circulation: The gentle pressure of the brush on the skin can help to stimulate blood flow, which can lead to a healthier complexion.
Lymphatic drainage: Dry brushing can help to stimulate lymphatic drainage, which can help to remove toxins from the body and reduce the appearance of cellulite.
Stress relief: The act of dry brushing can be a relaxing and meditative experience, helping to reduce stress and promote relaxation.
Overall, dry brushing is a simple and effective way to improve the health and appearance of your skin, while also promoting overall wellness.
This document explains exactly how to dry brush for maximum benefits. Remember, consistency is key – stick to it and you’ll soon reap the many rewards of dry brushing!
Tips on Working with Your Doctor for Total Breast Health Care
Patients are always asking me if their doctor will understand their thermography report.
There’s a large spectrum of responses I’ve heard from my patients’ doctors.
Some doctors support thermography so much so, they highly suggest all their patients to have an annual full-body scan. The full-body scan will assess an individual’s current health status by listing any abnormal hot or cold spots throughout the entire body.
Medical thermography is infrared imaging. Ideally, you would use thermography for cancer prevention, but it can also be early cancer detection which could save your life (70% of those who have diagnosed cancers from anatomical testing, could have been found up to 10 years earlier on a thermography scan).
Other doctors have never heard of thermography. Most are somewhere in between.
Here are some tips on working with your doctor:
Let them know we are not looking to replace the traditional tests, only add to them.
Email your report to them and ask for a consult appointment to review your results. A thermologist will compose your thermography report much like how a radiologist will write a report on an X-ray or ultrasound.These reports are meant for your primary care physician to offer you further recommendations based on your results if any are needed.
If you’d like a sample report to review with a Breast Thermography International (BTI), I am happy to discuss it with you or your doctor. Contact me to set up a review.
There is a wide range of suggestions your doctor could give you to improve your next thermography report.
Here are some examples they may recommend:
Change parts of your diet or balance your hormones.
Relieve muscle and joint tension with yoga or other forms of exercise.
Have a chiropractic adjustment.
Meditate with calming music or breath practices, since most diseases can be caused by stress.
Sometimes, although we try our best to live a healthy life, we still may need to reduce toxins with a detox program.
Also your doctor may want to order diagnostics testing from the findings in your report.
These are just some of the many recommendations you and your physician can discuss to work toward a healthier life.
And go ahead and share your thermography report with your family and friends. This might encourage them to include thermography into their own annual health regimen.
Remember, early detection saves lives and prevention is ideal.
Stress in this time of rapid change is a number one health concern and for good reason. In fact, the US Public Health Service has made stress reduction its number one health-promoting goal.
No one is immune to having experienced some form of stress and anxiety. Women may be even more prone due to wearing tight bras that could be undermining their capacity to breathe correctly.
If you are like me, when I get home, the first thing I take off after my shoes is my bra! I’ve been known to take my bra off even while driving.
Let’s explore the relationship between bras, stress and anxiety, and breathing.
Tight Bras and Women’s Health
As a thermographer, I see first hand the marks that tight bras leave on a woman’s rib cage, which can set the stage for chest or shallow breathing.
The tighter the constriction on the rib cage, the greater the possibility of the breath rising high into the chest.
Chest breathing calls on the sympathetic nervous system, the flight and flight breath or the breath that can create anxiety and even panic attacks.
Thermographic scan of woman who has not been wearing a bra for 15 minutes. Lymphatic backup.
Correct breathing, or diaphragmatic breathing, is a parasympathetic nervous system breath. Also called the ‘rest and digest breath,’ or the calming breath, this type of breathing is difficult in tight bras.
Bras, it seems, over the years have become more constrictive, with push up pads, underwires, Spanx, super tight sports bras, and all kinds of crazy shapes and sizing. Some of these restrictive options aren’t too far-removed the archaic Victoria corset.
Sadly, during the era of the corset, many women were dying of ‘consumption,’ another term for tuberculosis during Victorian times. By wearing a corset, the breath could not reach the bottom of the lungs, where oxygen reaches the alveoli and is exchanged into the blood. Corsets were not the cause, but they contributed to the rise in lung disease.
In response, ‘health corsets’ became popular, made with elastic fabric that were introduced as a way to alleviate pressure on the ribs caused by the heavily boned corsets of the Victorian era.
Women at this time were also prone to fainting because they could not breathe. They even created fainting rooms for women. This was also a time when some women were considered ‘hysterical’ and ‘nervous ninnies.’ Doctors told women they needed to have orgasms to calm down. Imagine that!
This fascinating article from the Smithsonian explores the impact of fashion and corsets on women’s health. It’s a real head-shaker of stupidity.
But some of the bras on the market today have similar issues, creating breathlessness that leads to anxiety and stress. If you love your bras and they are tight, buy a bra extender. They come in multiple sizes of hooks and colors. Or consider wearing bralettes, which are less constrictive.
Bras and Your Breath
Many people use shallow or chest breath patterns that are undermining their physical, mental and emotional health. Bras can exacerbate this constriction, contributing to greater chest breathing and over-breathing.
The rib cage is triangle-shaped, with the diaphragm tucked under at the widest bottom of the rib cage. When breathing properly, the bottom of the ribcage expands and the diaphragm descends, billowing out the belly.
Tight clothing like bras that constrict the rib cage will force the breath high into the chest, hence the term chest breathing.
Chest breathers are often associated with Type A personalities. How do you know if you are a chest breather? Sit up straight. Place your left hand on your chest and right hand on your abdomen. Take a few deep breaths. Which hand moves first? If it is the left hand, you are a chest breather.
When you breathe with your chest, you are using your secondary breathing muscles instead of primary muscles. Efficient breathing uses the diaphragm, but in chest breathing we are using the intercostals and abdominal muscles.
Moreover, chest breathing depends on weak upper chest and neck muscles, such as the trapezius, scalenes and pectorals. Therefore, chronic chest breathing can lead to chronic tension in the upper thoracic, shoulders and neck. The abdominals are usually chronically tight and all the organs of the body suffer from poor circulation.
There is strong scientific evidence linking chest breathing to high blood pressure and heart disease. The most alarming thing that happens during chest breathing is that the diaphragm is prevented from descending completely, which has an immediate impact on the blood flow back into the heart. Tight jeans can also exacerbate this.
Are You Over-Breathing?
Panic attacks are becoming more common. This could be the times we are in, or maybe it’s due to ribcage constriction or stress and anxiety causing over-breathing.
Over-breathing, or ‘hidden hyperventilation,’ happens when you experience 16 or more breaths per minute. It can mimic serious health concerns that can result in misdiagnosis and over-medicating, which are attributed to sixty percent of urban ambulance calls!
Couple overbreathing with wearing a mask all day and you have a potent brew for anxiety and even panic attacks.
Chronic or Hidden Hyperventilation is usually not recognized except in it’s extreme forms, although it can be both chronic and subtle. In fact, it is chronic low grade overbreathing that may be one of the most under-diagnosed health problems of our time.
When you are sitting quietly you breathe 13-15 breaths per min. Women usually breathe 12-14 breaths. But when we develop the habit of hyperventilating we breathe fast no matter what we are doing. This type of breathing has the patterns of chest breathing.
When the diaphragm is not used to its full extent this results in limited lung capacity and less oxygen being taken in. Most people will compensate by breathing in more breaths, thus causing over-breathing.
The first thing that happens with over-breathing is one loses too much carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is the crucial ingredient in helping maintain the right acid-alkaline balance in the blood. The slightest alterations in the pH of the body can make marked alterations in the rates of chemical reactions in the cells, slowing some down and speeding others up. When the body loses too much carbon dioxide the metabolism shifts from acid to alkaline.
Muscular tension and pain can manifest in cramps, tight occipitals, neck, shoulders, pain between the scapula, twitching and stiffness. As far back as 1978 the Journal of American Medical Association produced a list of symptoms thought to be associated with chronic or hidden hyperventilation. They include but are not limited to fatigue, exhaustion, heart palpitations, rapid pulse, numbness and tingling in the limbs, shortness of breath, yawning, stomach pains, cramps, difficulty swallowing, dry throat and mouth, belching, flatulence, abdominal bloating, acid reflux, heart burn, stiffness, anxiety, nightmares, insomnia, sweaty palms, impairment of concentration and memory and a feeling of losing one’s mind!
Focus On Your Breath
That’s why we need to wear less restrictive clothing, and bring our focus back to our breath. Breath is one of the greatest gifts we have been given, but often it goes unopened.
Breath is the simplest most effective stress-reducing tool in your survival kit, providing you are breathing correctly. By engaging with the breath, we increase our lifespan, relax chronic muscle tension, regain a clear mind and increase immune function – thus increasing our vitality. Yet, by ignoring the breath, we can lay the foundation for ill health.
Be mindful of your ribcage constriction, tight pants, poor posture and the depth and quality of your breath. Loosen your bra. And practice deep, mindful breathing, like I outline below. It is one of the fastest ways to come home to yourself and have peace of mind.
Long Complete Deep Breath
Sit straight. If the spine is in a balanced position, the ribs and muscles are able to move freely.
Begin to breathe into the abdomen, then into the chest and finish with the clavicle. All three are done in a smooth motion. As you exhale, start by relaxing the clavicle then slowly emptying the chest. Finally pull in the abdomen and force out any remaining air.
What this exercise will do for you:
Relax and calm you
Give you clarity, cool headedness and patience
Reduce and prevent build up of toxins in the lungs
Stimulate the chemicals in the brain to fight depression
Build the aura in strength
Lung capacity is expanded
Yours in radiant health and deep breathing,
Patricia
Spring is the time when the Earth gives us cleansing herbs and bitter greens to help detox and clear the stagnant energy of winter.
It is during this time of the year we begin foraging for our favorite edible spring greens like dandelion, nettle, watercress, lamb’s quarters, violet, chickweed, chicory, amaranth, red mustard, and arugula.
Spring is also a natural time to clear away toxins so the body can reboot after a long winter.
Mark Hyman MD, author of the Blood Sugar Solution 10- Day Detox Diet recommends eliminating sugars, processed foods, grains, dairy, and caffeine that are difficult to digest for 10 days. His diet is just one option of many out there if you are looking for an alternative to a traditional juice fast.
Cleansing is a tune up for the body.
Just as filters in your car clog up with carbon waste so do the filters your body like the liver, kidneys, and colon fill with metabolic waste
Organic produce is imperative while doing a cleanse. Buying organic produce can be pricey but in the long run it’s your health.
The Environmental Working Group has tirelessly been providing yearly updates to the most toxic produce as they call The Dirty Dozen, and the least toxic, The Clean 15.
I have been referring to them since my children were small and strawberries, peaches and bell peppers have never left the top of the dirty dozen list!
The Dirty Dozen List:
Prioritize buying these organic if and when you can.
Strawberries
Spinach
Kale, collard, and mustard greens
Nectarines
Apples
Grapes
Cherries
Peaches
Pears
Bell and hot peppers
Tomatoes
Celery
EWG’s Clean Fifteen for 2021 List:
These choices have the least amount of pesticide and buying organic is less important.
Avocados
Sweet corn
Pineapple
Onions
Papaya
Sweet peas (frozen)
Eggplant
Asparagus
Broccoli
Cabbage
Kiwi
Cauliflower
Mushrooms
Honeydew melon
Cantaloupes
8 out of 10 cancers now are from toxins and cancer is expected to increase 30% by 2030.
We just have to be smart about what we put in our body, on our skin and in our thought-forms.
Please share this article with your friends, especially women with children.
Honor the spiritual dimensions of the plant kingdom for the Life Force that they provide us.
Eat green, green everything. Your plate should be a green as the fluorescent green of the spring landscape. Remember your breasts love all things green!
As the holiday season approaches, a gathering would not be complete without a cheese board. Until I started researching the genetically engineered growth hormone called rBGH, I was a hard core grazer at those cheese boards. Not anymore.
This is not new news, but like news, it is released and falls by the way side. It is urgent that women in particular know the dangers that genetically engineered cheese poses to their breast health.
Please seek out organic milk and cheese at your local farmers market and health food stores. For those wanting to avoid cheese altogether, several vegan cheeses have come on the market. There are options.
Thank you Dr. Mercola for permission to share this message.
By Dr. Mercola
Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women. If you’re a woman, your chance of getting breast cancer in your lifetime is about one in eight.
Researchers at a breast cancer conference stated that up to one-third of breast cancers could be avoided by making different lifestyle choices, such as the foods you choose to eat.
There is one food you may be surprised to learn, that is directly linked to breast cancer—and that is pasteurized dairy in the form of milk or milk products.
The risk lies in consuming milk from cows treated with a synthetic, genetically engineered growth hormone called rBGH. Unfortunately, this applies to about one third of the dairy cows in America.
When you consume dairy products from these cows, every product made from their milk is contaminated with this dangerous hormone—be it cheese, ice cream, yogurt, butter—or just plain milk.
Cows are injected with rBGH to boost their milk production.
But science has proven this practice, although profitable to the industry, comes at a high price to you, as well as to dairy cows. RBGH, or recombinant bovine growth hormone, is a synthetic version of natural bovine somatotropin (BST), a hormone produced in cows’ pituitary glands.
Monsanto developed the recombinant version from genetically engineered E. coli bacteria and markets it under the brand name “Posilac.”
RBGH is the largest selling dairy animal drug in America.
But it is banned in Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and in the 27 countries of the European Union because of its dangers to human health. Many have tried to inform the public of the risks of using this hormone in dairy cows, but their attempts have been met with overwhelming opposition by the powerful dairy and pharmaceutical industries, and their government liaisons.
Monsanto Lawyers Threaten “Dire Consequences” for Whistleblowers
In 1997, two Fox-affiliate investigative journalists, Jane Akre and Steve Wilson, attempted to air a program exposing the truth about the dangers of rBGH. Lawyers for Monsanto, a major advertiser with the Florida network, sent letters promising “dire consequences” if the story aired.
After attempts by Fox to bribe the reporters to keep quiet failed, the station agreed to air a revised version of the report. An unheard of 83 edits later, the report was shelved and the courts took over. Although a lower court ruled in favor of the reporters for some $425,000, a Florida appeals court denied them whistleblower protection, claiming Fox (and the media in general) have no obligation to tell the truth and have the freedom to report, essentially, fact OR fiction as real news.
They tell their story in an article at PR Watch. (It was taken down)
It is stories like this that reignite my determination to bring you factual information about these important issues regarding your health.
Despite decades of evidence about the dangers of rBGH, the FDA still maintains it’s safe for human consumption and ignores scientific evidence to the contrary. According to Dr. Samuel Epstein, a well-respected professional in cancer prevention and toxicology and chairman of the Cancer Prevention Coalition, the FDA has responded to evidence that rBGH is unsafe with a wide range of “tenuous and inconsistent claims” based on “highly speculative and misleading calculations…based on a wide range of assumptions,” often citing flawed scientific studies that simply are not meaningful.
In 1999, the United Nations Safety Agency ruled unanimously not to endorse or set safety standards for rBGH milk, which has effectively resulted in an international ban on U.S. milk. The Cancer Prevention Coalition, trying for years to get the use of rBGH by the dairy industry banned, resubmitted a petition to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, MD, in January 2010.
They are still waiting for a response. Although the FDA stubbornly sticks to its position that milk from rBGH-treated cows is no different than milk from untreated cows, this is just plain false and is not supported by science.
Differences Between rBGH-Treated and Untreated Milk
According to Dr. Epstein, rBGH milk differs from natural milk nutritionally, pharmacologically, immunologically, and hormonally, and he cites the following differences. RBGH milk contains:
Increased levels of insulin growth factor-1 (IGF-1)
Contamination with illegal antibiotics and drugs used to treat mastitis and other rBGH-induced diseases, as well as pus from increased rates of mastitis among the cows injected with rBGH
Increased levels of the thyroid hormone enzyme thyroxin-5′-monodeiodinase
Reduced casein content (a milk protein)
Increased concentration of long-chain fatty acids and decreased concentration of short-chain fatty acids
ALL of the factors above can cause or contribute to health problems for people. But people aren’t the only ones suffering—as it turns out, the cows getting injected with these hormones are suffering as well.
RBGH Causes 16 Different Medical Problems in Dairy Cows
As mentioned above, the cows receiving this synthetic hormone suffer massively high rates of mastitis, a painful infection of their udders. Monsanto’s own data show up to an 80 percent incidence of mastitis in hormone-treated cattle, resulting in the need for routine administration of antibiotics and other drugs. This increases the frequency of allergic reactions and fuels antibiotic resistance. But mastitis is not the only adverse veterinary effect. The Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research (2003) found 16 different harmful medical conditions resulting from rBGH administration to dairy cattle, including:
40 percent increase in infertility
55 percent increased risk for lameness
Shortened lifespan
Hoof disorders
Visibly abnormal milk
From the data presented in this meta-analysis, I think it’s a reasonable conclusion that injecting animals with rBGH is cruel and inhumane treatment, besides producing milk that is not fit for human consumption.
RBGH Raises Levels of IGF-1 in Milk by Up to 70 Percent
IGF-1 is a potent hormone that acts on your pituitary gland to induce powerful metabolic and endocrine effects, including cell growth and replication. Elevated IGF-1 levels are associated with breast and other cancers. When cows are injected with rBGH, their levels of IGF-1 increase up to 20-fold, and this IGF-1 is excreted in the milk.
According to some confidential, unpublished industry studies, IGF-1 levels consistently elevate by 25 to 70 percent in rBGH milk. In reality, it is probably worse than that, since standard calculation techniques used by the dairy industry underestimate IGF-1 levels by a factor of four.
Not only are IGF-1 levels elevated in the milk of rBGH-treated cows, but a significant portion of this IGF-1 is in the free, or unbound, form, which may be about 10 times as potent as the IGF-1 in untreated milk. And not only does pasteurization NOT destroy this protein, but studies show it actually increases IGF-1 levels by about 70 percent, presumably by disrupting protein binding. There is a glaring absence of safety margins for IGF-1 in milk, and assurances by industry and government regulators to establish these parameters have been nothing more than empty promises.
Ok, so the levels of IGF-1 are higher in rBGH milk. But does the IGF get absorbed into your system when you drink it, or does your digestive tract break it down and render it inert?
Science tells us unequivocally that you do NOT break this down when you swallow it, but you DO absorb it into your bloodstream, as evidenced by both human and animal studies. Infants and young children absorb IGF-1 in even higher concentrations than adults, because their gut wall is more permeable to proteins. Infants and young children show higher levels of cow’s milk protein antibodies. The IGF-1 in dairy products appears to be protected during digestion by casein and by dairy’s buffering effects.
How Elevated IGF-1 Levels May Raise Your Breast Cancer Risk
Only one of every 10 breast cancer cases is attributed to genetics—the other nine are triggered by environmental factors, some of which are dietary. The fact that increased IGF-1 levels in hormone-treated milk increase your risk for breast, colon, and prostate cancers as has been documented in about 50 scientific publications over the past three decades. Among them is the 1998 Harvard Nurses Health study, which showed that premenopausal women with elevated IGF-1 levels had up to a seven-fold increase in breast cancer. And women younger than age 35 who have elevated IGF-1 have more aggressive breast cancer.
How does IGF-1 contribute to breast cancer?
IGF-1 regulates cell growth, cell division, and the ability of cancer cells to spread to your distant organs (invasiveness). In other words, IGF-1 has potent mitogenic effects in human breast tissue, especially in the presence of estradiol (a form of estrogen). Growth factors such as IGF-1 are “catalysts” for the transformation of normal breast tissue into breast cancer tissue, and are critically involved in the aberrant growth of human breast cancer cells. The following two findings have direct bearing on this link between elevated IGF-1 levels and breast cancer:
Specific IGF-1 mammary cell receptors are elevated by a factor of 10 in malignant human breast tissue.
IGF-1 plasma concentrations are higher in breast cancer patients than in healthy patients. (As an aside, this is how the breast cancer drug tamoxifen exerts its action—by reducing blood IGF-1 levels.)
According to Dr. Epstein, IGF-1 blocks your natural defense mechanisms against early microscopic cancers—it prevents apoptosis of cancer cells, or programmed cellular self-destruction.
The breast tissues of female fetuses and infants are especially sensitive to hormonal influences and cancer-causing chemicals. Infants and children exposed to high IGF-1 early on may become “sensitized,” leading to health problems later in life, such as breast enlargement in infants and young children, and breast cancer in adult women. Yet, despite these elevated risks to children, few schools make rBGH-free or organic milk available, nor do most state governments under low-income food programs. A study authored by Dr. Epstein demonstrated that IGF-1 in rBGH milk is a potential risk factor for both breast and gastrointestinal cancers. And a study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention concluded that diet can impact cancer risk by influencing IGF-1 level.
The risks don’t end with breast cancer.
Ten studies show that consuming milk from rBGH-treated cows raises your risk for colon cancer. Seven studies document this for prostate cancer. If you want more information on this topic, I recommend reading Dr. Epstein’s 2006 book, What’s In Your Milk?
Are You Drinking rBGH Milk?
You very well may be drinking rBGH milk, or eating rBGH cheese or yogurt, as no labeling is required. This is despite the fact that surveys show that more than 80 percent of Americans want it labeled, but the government, as usual, continues bowing to industry lobbyists. The good news is, as increasing numbers of consumers and dairies choose to avoid rBGH, you can find labels that say “rBGH-free” or a similar variation. Organic milk is also rBGH-free. According to the Hartman Group, organic milk is now among the first organic product consumers buy.
Organic milk is enjoying an annual growth rate of about 20 percent, while overall milk consumption has dropped by about 10 percent.
Organic milk is certainly preferable to milk that contains this dangerous hormone. However, I still don’t recommend drinking any milk that is pasteurized—organic or otherwise. You can avoid the risks of rBGH, as well as pasteurization, by drinking only raw milk that comes from a small farmer you know and trust. The milk issue is really part of the larger problem of genetic manipulation of our food supply. The more you can avoid genetically modified (GM) and highly processed foods, the healthier you and your family will be.
HERE ARE THREE THINGS THAT YOU CAN DO:
1. Do not buy milk from cows treated with rBGH. Unless the milk-label states “NO rBGH”, you can assume the milk is contaminated. rBGH has become so widely used by dairy farmers. Most health food stores sell rBGH-free milk.
2. Contact your local supermarket and find out if they have a policy regarding rBGH and milk. Make clear that you would like rBGH-free milk.
3. Write to the FDA and express your concern that they are restricting the labeling
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Gratitude may be one of the most overlooked tools that we all have access to every day. Cultivating gratitude doesn’t cost any money and it certainly doesn’t take much time, but the benefits are enormous.
Practicing Gratitude is A Powerful Action for Health and Happiness
Gratitude, it turns out, makes you happier and healthier. If you invest in a way of seeing the world that is mean and frustrated, you’re going to get a world that is more mean and frustrating and it actually lowers your immune functions. But if you can find any authentic reason to give thanks… anything at all that you’re grateful for in your life or in the world and put your attention there, an overwhelming body of research indicates you’re going to experience more joy, vitality, and inner peace.
Gratitude doesn’t just make things feel better – it also makes them get better. According to recent research, gratitude is good for your physical, emotional, and mental health. People who express more gratitude have fewer aches and pains, better sleep, and stronger mental clarity.
If Thankfulness Were A Drug…
“If [thankfulness] were a drug,” Dr. P. Murali Doraiswamy, head of the division of biologic psychology at Duke University Medical Center, tells us: “it would be the world’s best-selling product with a health maintenance indication for every major organ system.”
As Dr. Doraiswamy explains, studies have shown how the expression of gratitude leads to measurable effects on multiple body and brain systems.
Cognitive and pleasure related neurotransmitters (dopamine)
Inflammatory and immune systems (cytokines)
Stress hormones (cortisol)
Cardiac and EEG rhythms
Blood pressure, and
Blood sugar
Does Gratitude Really Cause Good Fortune?
What if people who are fortunate, or who are particularly healthy, just feel more grateful? Does gratitude really cause good fortune, or is it just a byproduct?
The answer surprised me, and it may surprise you, too.
In a study conducted by Robert A. Emmons, Ph.D., at the University of California at Davis and his colleague Mike McCullough at the University of Miami, randomly assigned participants were given one of three tasks. Each week, participants kept a short journal. One group briefly described five things they were grateful for that had occurred in the past week, another five recorded daily hassles from the previous week that displeased them, and the neutral group was asked to list five events or circumstances that affected them, but they were not told whether to focus on the positive or on the negative.
Keep in mind that these groups were randomly assigned and that nothing about their lives was inherently different, other than the journaling they were doing.
The types of things people listed in the grateful group included: “Sunset through the clouds;” “the chance to be alive;” and “the generosity of friends.”
And in the hassles group, people listed familiar things like: “Taxes;” “hard to find parking;” and “burned my dinner.”
After ten weeks, participants in the gratitude group reported feeling better about their lives as a whole and were a full 25 percent happier than the hassled group. They reported fewer health complaints, and they were now exercising an average of 1.5 hours more per week.
In a later study by Emmons, people were asked to write every day about things for which they were grateful. Not surprisingly, this daily practice led to greater increases in gratitude than did the weekly journaling in the first study. But the results showed another benefit: Participants in the gratitude group also reported offering others more emotional support or help with a personal problem, indicating that the gratitude exercise increased their goodwill towards others, or more technically, their “pro-social” motivation.
What’s The Brain Science Behind All This?
Neuropsychologist Rick Hanson puts it this way: “The neurons that fire together, wire together… The longer the neurons [brain cells] fire, the more of them that fire, and the more intensely they fire, the more they’re going to wire that inner strength –- that happiness, gratitude, feeling confident, feeling successful, feeling loved and lovable.”
And what’s going on in the brain leads to changes in behavior. Grateful people tend to take better care of themselves and to engage in more protective health behaviors, like regular exercise and a healthy diet. They’re also found to have lower levels of stress. And lowered levels of stress are linked to increased immune function and to decreased rates of cancer and heart disease.
So it seems, you take better care of what you appreciate. And that extends to your body, and also to the people around you.
Good For Your Relationships
Not only does saying “thank you” constitute good manners but showing appreciation can also help you win new friends, according to a 2014 study published in Emotion.
The study found that thanking a new acquaintance makes them more likely to seek an ongoing relationship. So whether you thank a stranger for holding the door or you send a quick thank-you note to that co-worker who helped you with a project, acknowledging other people’s contributions can lead to new opportunities.
In a 2012 study conducted by the University of Kentucky, study participants who ranked higher on gratitude scales were found to have more sensitivity and empathy toward other people and a decreased desire to seek revenge.
But What About Tough Times?
As I was learning about this research, I was still a bit skeptical. Life can at times be brutal. Sometimes just surviving can feel like an accomplishment. Can you really feel grateful in times of loss?
Yes, you can.
In fact, findings s show that adversity can actually boost gratitude. In a Web-based survey tracking the personal strengths of more than 3,000 American respondents, researchers noted an immediate surge in feelings of gratitude after Sept. 11, 2001.
Tough times can actually deepen gratefulness if we allow them to show us not to take things for granted. Dr. Emmons reminds us that the first Thanksgiving took place after nearly half the pilgrims died from a rough winter and year. It became a national holiday in 1863 in the middle of the Civil War and was moved to its current date in the 1930s following the Depression.
Why would a tragic event provoke gratitude? When times are good, we tend to take for granted the very things that deserve our gratitude. In times of uncertainty, though, we often realize that the people and circumstances we’ve come to take for granted are actually of immense value to our lives.
Robert Emmons, Ph.D., writes:” In the face of demoralization, gratitude has the power to energize. In the face of brokenness, gratitude has the power to heal. In the face of despair, gratitude has the power to bring hope. In other words, gratitude can help us cope with hard times.”
In good times, and in tough times, gratitude turns out to be one of the most powerful choices you can make.
Putting Gratitude To Work For You
If you want to put all this into practice, here are some simple things you can do to build positive momentum:
1) Say Grace: Anytime you sit down to a meal with loved ones, take a moment to go around and invite everyone to say one thing they are grateful for. Even if you eat a meal alone, you can take a moment to give thanks.
2) Keep A DailyGratitude Journal: This really does work. And yes, there is an app for that.
3) Share The Love: Make it a practice to tell a spouse, partner or friend something you appreciate about them every day.
4) Remember Mortality: You never know how long you, or anyone you love, will be alive. How would you treat your loved ones if you kept in mind that this could be the last time you’d ever see them?
Thank You
Thank you for reading this. Thank you for being grateful for the blessings and even for the challenges that come your way. When you express gratitude, you make your world, and our whole world, better and brighter. Turn off the bad news and focus on being part of the change. We are all in this together!
Organic milk is enjoying an annual growth rate of about 20 percent, while overall milk consumption has dropped by about 10 percent.