Mental Health
Here you can read the latest news and research studies covering mental health. This is also the place to find out about different strategies on how you can reduce stress and boost happiness, and many other ways to look after your mental wellbeing.
City trees may trap more CO2 than we thought
It’s becoming common knowledge at this point that trees greatly benefit cities and the people that call them home. City trees and urban green areas regulate temperature, improve mental health and reduce loneliness for urbanites, clean the air and even reduce crime rates. Our tall, green friends Read More...
Cyberbullying decreased sharply during the pandemic
Despite what you might have thought, when many schools closed for remote learning during the Pandemic, parents, teachers, and students alike were relieved to find that cyberbullying actually decreased by a lot. A new study from Boston University has found that cyberbullying fell by between 30 Read More...
How vitamin D promotes brain health and better moods
Recently, vitamin D has been a hot topic for The Optimist Daily. We’ve shared a lot of stories about this important vitamin, from how to figure out if your body needs more of it (spoiler: it probably does!) to debunking common myths about it. So far, we’ve focused a lot on how vitamin D Read More...
Your loved one suffers from migraines? Here's how to help them
For anyone who suffers from migraines, the pain can be unbearable. On the one hand, there is the physical pain of these recurring headaches. On the other hand, there’s the frustration of people downplaying just how much people with migraines can suffer. According to the National Headache Read More...
Your gut biome could be behind your anxiety
Here at The Optimist Daily, we regularly report on new findings about our incredible microbiome. Scientists keep uncovering more and more crucial roles these tiny microorganisms living in our gut play. From memory, to warding off chemotherapy side effects, to preventing brain damage in premature Read More...
An effective treatment for gaming and internet addiction in teens
Everyone loves playing games. Whether that be a physical sport, board games, or video games, there is something innately human about wanting to play them. But for some, these hobbies can become addictive. The World Health Organization now recognizes being addicted to video games as a disease. Read More...
Stop comparing yourself to others. Try this instead
As the old saying goes, comparison is the thief of joy—and humans love joy! So, why is it that we so often suffer from the tenacious tendency to compare ourselves to others? This impulse to compare is called “social comparison,” and there are two ways in which we engage with it. Upward Read More...
What is validation and why do we need it in relationships?
Validation is crucial for building healthy relationships. This word encompasses the simple act of listening and understanding another person, which communicates that you “get” what they might be going through. In other words, validation is reflecting what another person might be feeling, and Read More...
Do long weekend walks make up for daily ones? Here’s what the experts say
It’s no secret that regular exercise is good for our health—physical, mental, and emotional. However, during the week our schedules can get pretty hectic, which leaves us hunched over our desks, visualizing all the work that’s piling up in our minds, all the while talking ourselves out of the Read More...
Plant-based pleasure—why vegans have better sex
It’s common knowledge in the emoji world that fruits and veggies (peaches and eggplants) have a sexy rep—but could the sexiness of plant-based foods translate to real life? The answer is yes. We’ve shared many stories about how eating more plants is better for the planet and our bodies, Read More...