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Reflexes
Reaction times are best with high and rising pressure, clearing skies and comfortable temperatures.
Reaction times (reflexes) are slowed by low or falling pressure, cloudy skies, very wet, snowy or icy conditions, extremes of temperatures or hot, dry winds. This may increase the risk of accidents for operators of automobiles and other mechanical equipment. It can also affect the performance of sports teams and athletes
These are the same factors that cause problems with joint pain and mental function and that can induce labor. For example, when pressures fall rapidly on a chilly, damp day, the joints swell and offer more resistance to movement. When that happens, we can't respond physically as quickly even when there is no pain involved.
These weather conditions may also impair the ability to focus on a task or thought and this distraction may
lead to poorer reaction times than when we are singly focused. Knowing your limitations and the limitations
of others around us (like other drivers or factory workers) might help keep us safer.
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Attentiveness
Mental function is best during times of relatively high pressure, comfortable temperature and humidity. It paradoxically can also be high during major weather events such as strong thunderstorms, tornadoes or hurricanes, perhaps because of increased adrenaline flow.
Mental alertness in general is impaired when atmospheric conditions put a stress on the body. Extreme heat and cold for example can stress the body's regulatory and circulatory systems resulting in reduced mental function.
You tend to make more mistakes (e.g. more typing errors) and the quality of work diminishes (e.g. in factories there are lower production rates and poorer quality) when the environment is uncomfortable.
Attentiveness in school likewise can be tied to the weather. Days with uncomfortably high temperatures and humidity produce increased restlessness in the classroom, poorer performance on tests and increases in disciplinary problems.
One possible explanation may be that we are distracted, unable to concentrate on the matter at hand because we dwell on our discomfort. Another it may in part be a circulation issue as the body's regulatory system adjusts the blood flow in order to maintain a constant body temperature. When facing extremes of cold, the body's regulatory system will slow the flow of blood to the extremities to attempt to reduce heat loss. In extreme heat, the flow to the skin in greatly increased in order to attempt to maximize heat loss. The brain may somehow get shortchanged in both cases.
Be extra careful when making (take more time) important decisions under these extreme conditions. Teachers
may also want to use this information to make lesson plans. If weather will make it difficult to concentrate
(like on a hot and humid day in a school with no air conditioning), it may not be a good day to start a new
topic. It may be better to show a movie instead and leave the new subject to another day with more favorable
and comfortable weather.
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Mood Disorders
Weather affects how we feel every day. Bright sunshine, light winds, comfortable (slightly below normal) temperatures and low humidity and high pressure give the greatest positive boost to our moods. Our outlook is like the weather, the brightest (we tend to be more optimistic) in these conditions. This is especially true if the weather had been gray and dreary for a while before the weather improved. When that happens, the fine weather is most appreciated.
On the other hand, our moods turn sour, we become edgy, restless and more likely to be pessimistic even depressed when strong storms or fronts approach with overcast skies, precipitation, low and/or falling pressures, high humidity, and strong, gusty winds. Our moods can also turn bad when hot, dry winds (like the Chinook or Santa Ana) blow. In some mid and high latitude locations, the long nights, persistent overcast and frequent storms of winter cause a more continuous mood disorder for many people.
When these conditions exist, you might anticipate how others might behave and adjust accordingly. For example, you might expect other drivers to be less courteous and careful and therefore you would be more attentive.
Seasonal Affective Disorder
Animals react to the changing season with changes in mood and behavior and human beings are no exception. Most people find they eat and sleep slightly more in winter and dislike the dark mornings and short days. Some have more severe bouts of feeling down all the time, low energy, problems with sleep and appetite, and reduced concentration to the point where they have difficulty functioning at work or in the home. This disorder is called SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder (affective is a psychiatric term for mood). During the spring and summer, these people feel well and "normal".
The problems partly stem from the lack of bright light in winter. It is not a psychosomatic or imaginary illness. Researchers have proved that bright light makes a difference to the brain chemistry. It is believed that changes in release of serotonin, a neurotransmitter, by the brain underlie mood seasonality and seasonal affective disorder. Serotonin has the lowest turnover rate in the winter time. This is perhaps our bodies way of compensating for the decrease in production; the rate of production of serotonin by the brain has been linked with the duration of bright sunlight, and serotonin production rose rapidly with increased sun exposure.
For those who suffer from this disorder, one prescribed solution is light therapy. A bright or fluorescent light for a few hours in the morning reduces winter depression symptoms, perhaps by reducing the level of the neurotransmitter melatonin, normally present at night (production and release in part triggered by low light levels). You should if possible schedule time outdoors in sunlight each day. Clinical studies show equal effectiveness with light and antidepressants, so patient preference should be considered and treatment should be started proactively in people who have a history of SAD.
Those who don't suffer from SAD, may feel the same sour mood on gray days perhaps due to the same biochemical changes, which affect them but to a lesser degree. They bounce back more when the weather brightens.
Bipolar Disorder
Seasonality in bipolar disorder does exist for manic, depressive and mixed mood episodes. The defined seasonal
patterns imply different underlying mechanisms for the onset of each subtype of mood episode.Manic episodes
are positively correlated with increased length of days and increased brightness of light , seeing an increase
in early spring while depressive episodes mirror SAD in their association with decreased length of days,
seeing an increase in hospital visits during the early part of winter. Humidity and temperature may also
play a role in the seasonality of bipolar disorder. The seasonality of bipolar disorder is hotly debated,
and will be better understood when the underlying biochemical causes for the disorder are finally uncovered.
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Useful Links:
- Today's map for ATTENTIVENESS
The Attentiveness map shows areas where weather may impact
attentiveness for the current day.
- Today's map for REFLEX
The Reflex Times image shows areas where weather will potentially
impact one's reflexes for the current day
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