Be
kind and compassionate to one another,
forgiving
each other,Just as in Christ God forgave you.
Ephesians 4:32
Wednesday,
17 February was Random Acts of Kindness Day. Given the latest research on
showing kindness and gratitude, it’s a wonder that we need to designate a
special day for random acts of kindness, but it seems we do. Maybe in the hurly
burly of busy lives we sometime overlook the simple acts that make a real
difference to our sense of wellbeing, our moods, our health and particularly,
our mental health.
So
what are the benefits of kindness and showing gratitude? The research is
overwhelming in the benefits of altruism and simple acts of kindness and gratitude
, not just from the work of Seligman, Fredrickson, Stratton and others in
Positive Psychology, but also from a range of scientific studies too.
·
Showing gratitude and kindness has a
strong impact on positive emotions and wellbeing.
One of Plato’s interesting observations was that “a grateful mind is a great mind which
eventually attracts to itself, great things”. Recent scientific research
confirms that people who are more grateful and kind have higher levels of
wellbeing and are happier, less depressed, less stressed and more satisfied
with their lives and social relationships.
·
Kindness makes us happier.
Researcher Sonja Lyubomirsky, Ph.D. found that people who
engage in kind acts become happier over time. Basically when we are kind to
others, we feel good about ourselves and become more optimistic and positive.
Another researcher, Elizabeth Dunn found that the act of helping another person
triggers activity in the cortex regions of the brain, the parts involved in
pleasure and reward. In essence, when we serve others, it produces the same
sort of pleasure as gratification of a personal desire.
·
Doing kind acts for others reduces
anxiety.
University of British Columbia researchers
assigned people with high levels of anxiety to do kind acts for other people at
least six times a week for four weeks. The researchers found that doing nice
things for people led to a significant increase in people’s positive moods. It
also led to an increase in relationship satisfaction and a decrease in social
avoidance in socially anxious individuals.
·
Doing acts of kindness and gratitude
lowers blood pressure and gives us healthier hearts.
According to Dr David R. Hamilton, acts of kindness create
emotional warmth, which releases a hormone known as oxytocin. Oxytocin causes
the release of a chemical called nitric oxide, which dilates the blood vessels.
This reduces blood pressure and, therefore, protects the heart by lowering
blood pressure.
·
Showing gratitude and kindness improve the
quality of sleep.
A 2015 study in London, published in the Journal of Health
Psychology found that gratitude helps improve the quality of sleep and lowers
blood pressure too.
·
Showing collective gratitude improves the
organisation’s outcomes.
In a 2015 study published in the International
Business Research Journal, found that collective gratitude can foster
employees’ organisational commitment, lead to positive outcomes, and helps
eliminate toxic workplace emotions, attitudes and negative emotions such as
envy, anger and greed in today’s highly competitive work environment.
·
Kindness slows the aging process.
Scientific journals have recently suggested that there is a
strong link between compassion and the activity of the vagus nerve. The vagus
nerve, in addition to regulating the heart rate, also controls inflammation
levels in the body in what is known as the inflammatory reflex. One study of
the lovingkindness meditation, found that kindness and compassion did reduce
inflammation in the body, most likely due to its effects on the vagus nerve.
Ultimately, reducing inflammation can slow the aging process.
We
have lots of reasons then to practise kindness and gratitude on a daily basis
and maybe not just on one special day. So what are you waiting for? Try to do
one kind act each day and show gratitude each day and be surprised by how much
your life can change.
References:
Jacobsen,
D. 2015. 10 New Studies on the Benefits of Gratitude. Accessed at:
Keltner,
D. 2009. Born to Be Good. W.W. Norton and Company: New York.
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