Neuroscience of Thanksgiving and happiness: How to maximize the health benefits of practicing gratitude

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, a time when we give thanks and practice gratitude for what we have, we turned to neuroscience to find out if doing so actually makes us happier and healthier. Here’s what we found.

Is gratitude actually good for your health?

“People who are grateful live longer, are happier, and also tend to hit workplace markers like [making] more money, and [getting] promoted more frequently,” Emiliana Simon-Thomas, Ph.D., science director at U.C. Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center, tells Fast Company. “But the key is not a fake-it-till-you-make-it approach—no, it’s real gratitude, real contentment, based on an accurate assessment of things, not through rose-colored glasses.”

Practicing gratitude—in other words, not taking things for granted, but appreciating the good and bad in everyday life—creates a heightened awareness of your values and strengths, plus a greater understanding of others. Plus, it creates greater emotional intelligence by increasing emotional regulation, empathy, and resilience.

In general, grateful people are more satisfied with their lives, less materialistic, and less likely to suffer from burnout, according to the Greater Good Science Center’s white paper, The Science of Gratitude.

What other kinds of health benefits come from being grateful?

A 2021 University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) study by David Newman and Wendy Mendes found that people who were deemed highest in gratitude reported lower heart rates, better sleep, less fatigue, a greater appreciation toward others, and overall feelings of pleasantness when reflecting on the best part of the day.

How does gratitude work in the brain?

“Expressing gratitude can positively change your brain,” Kristin Francis, M.D., a psychiatrist at Huntsman Mental Health Institute, says in the University of Utah’s Health blog HealthFeed. “It boosts dopamine and serotonin, the neurotransmitters in the brain that improve your mood immediately, giving you those positive feelings of pleasure, happiness, and well-being.”

What’s the best way to start practicing gratitude?

Studies show writing gratitude letters can significantly improve the mental health of people with depression and anxiety. In one study, individuals were asked to either write a gratitude letter, keep a journal, or do neither. Those who wrote gratitude letters reported significantly better mental health at 4 and 12 weeks following the study.

Simon-Thomas recommends what she calls “Gratitude 1-2-3” to express gratitude this upcoming holiday:

1. Be specific about what you’re grateful for: Instead of saying, “Thanks for coming to dinner,” say, “Thanks for coming to my house for this Thanksgiving meal.”
2. Acknowledge the effort: “I know it took some effort to pack up the car and sit in traffic, so I am acknowledging effort.”
3. Share how what they did benefitted you: “Having you for Thanksgiving dinner made me so happy. It was a treat to see you after all these years.”

If you’re wondering how you’re doing, or looking for more suggestions, you can also take this gratitude quiz, based on a scale developed by psychologists Mitchel Adler and Nancy Fagley.

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