How Colors affect your mood
All day, everyday, we are surrounded by endless variations of colors. Reds, blues, greens and yellows fill our world not only as lights of different wavelengths releasing electromagnetic energy, but also as non verbal signals, affecting both our physical and psychological well being.
Colors can act as unconscious sparks that influence how we think, feel and react to the world around us. A fascinating element is that we are able to see around 7,000,000 colors; some blends can create a clash of the senses where as other colour combinations create an atmosphere of harmony and balance.
There are many expressions in English that portray our connectivity to color; tickled pink, seeing red, green with envy, bad as black, grey area, born to the purple and feeling blue, just to name a few. No doubt our emotions and perceptions are linked to color in ways that we are just beginning to understand, however to add another shade to this discussion, colors in other cultures can have very different meanings. So, black isn’t a sign of mourning in all cultures, blue doesn’t always indicate sadness and red can be perceived as both good and evil, depending on the country in question. ‘In Asia orange is a positive, spiritually enlightened, and life-affirming colour, while in the US it is a colour of road hazards, traffic delays, and fast-food restaurants’ (Bortoli & Maroto, 2001).
In the past few decades, researchers have been intrigued by how colors unconsciously affect our moods, the way we think and why we are attracted to or repulsed by a particular hue. The scientific exploration of ‘color psychology’ goes beyond mere assumption: Many designers, athletes, advertisers, restaurateurs, health care providers and teachers are now building on their knowledge about color to improve health, mood, efficiency, appetite, and performance.
Scientists believe that color influences us because of ‘learned association’— we repeatedly encounter colors in relation to experience; for example, red stop signs signal danger, blue skies convey peacefulness. ‘The color green, which evokes calmness, is associated with nature and trees, which have a relaxing effect on many people,’ Dr. Ellington says.
Colors can act as unconscious sparks that influence how we think, feel and react to the world around us. A fascinating element is that we are able to see around 7,000,000 colors; some blends can create a clash of the senses where as other colour combinations create an atmosphere of harmony and balance.
There are many expressions in English that portray our connectivity to color; tickled pink, seeing red, green with envy, bad as black, grey area, born to the purple and feeling blue, just to name a few. No doubt our emotions and perceptions are linked to color in ways that we are just beginning to understand, however to add another shade to this discussion, colors in other cultures can have very different meanings. So, black isn’t a sign of mourning in all cultures, blue doesn’t always indicate sadness and red can be perceived as both good and evil, depending on the country in question. ‘In Asia orange is a positive, spiritually enlightened, and life-affirming colour, while in the US it is a colour of road hazards, traffic delays, and fast-food restaurants’ (Bortoli & Maroto, 2001).
In the past few decades, researchers have been intrigued by how colors unconsciously affect our moods, the way we think and why we are attracted to or repulsed by a particular hue. The scientific exploration of ‘color psychology’ goes beyond mere assumption: Many designers, athletes, advertisers, restaurateurs, health care providers and teachers are now building on their knowledge about color to improve health, mood, efficiency, appetite, and performance.
Scientists believe that color influences us because of ‘learned association’— we repeatedly encounter colors in relation to experience; for example, red stop signs signal danger, blue skies convey peacefulness. ‘The color green, which evokes calmness, is associated with nature and trees, which have a relaxing effect on many people,’ Dr. Ellington says.
White: Innocence, purity, simplicity, cleanliness. Medical professionals wear white to evoke sterility.
Red: Excitement, danger, warning, energy, romance, dominance. Enhances performance on detail-oriented tasks and athletic prowess.
Blue: Peace, professionalism, coldness, loyalty. Associated with the ocean and the sky. Increases proficiency in creative endeavors.
Green: Relaxation, comfort, hope, naturalness, fatigue. Connected to nature, grass, and trees; promotes a sense of calmness.
Yellow: Cheerfulness, happiness, liveliness, strength. Reminiscent of flowers, the sun and summer, yellow boosts optimism.
Frank H. Mahnke, an environmental designer based in Geneva and San Diego and one of the world’s leading color consultants, says, ‘The public underestimates the impact color has on emotional states at home, at school, in workplaces, and in health-care facilities. Even many architects and interior designers,’ he adds, ‘haven’t been trained in the psychological and physiological effects of color…’ which can result in choosing colors for someone’s environment which may not compliment their mood and overall disposition. The ‘right’ choice of colours can create a haven for relaxation or an environment that can increase efficiency, stimulate the mind and raise energy levels.
American surgeon Edwin Babbitt lists healing colors for many ailments in his book, Principles of Light and Color. He stated that thermal or warm colors of red, orange and yellow are stimulating, raise blood pressure, strengthen, and tonify. He went on to say that electrical or cool colors of blue, indigo and violet sedate, calm, ease inflammation, and lower blood pressure.
Physiologically light/color reaches the hypothalamus, the control center of the autonomic nervous system of the body. This regulates the pituitary – the master gland of the endocrine system. Each color has a different wavelength and this initiates specific responses in the nervous system. Color as light therapy is used in hospitals all over the world. For example newborns with jaundice are placed in blue light and Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD is treated with full-spectrum light. Next time you’re in a room, try and reflect on the different colors, one at a time. Explore how you feel, the thoughts/memories evoked, how that shade makes you feel and what it means to you.
Of course no one’s claiming that color can cure serious ailments, but we have established that color isn’t just pretty—it’s a mood-changing, blood-pressure-altering phenomenon. ‘Its most important use is for relaxation,’ says physician Norm Shealy, founder of the American Holistic Medical Association. ‘And since 75 percent or more of illnesses are the result of stress, relaxing can help prevent them.’ What’s more is that color awareness work teaches people to use an often-overlooked aspect of their senses to promote well-being.
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