How the Fall Season Affects Life, Mood, and Health

By: Austin Lermayer and Evan Kerzner, Staff Writers

Fall is a season some people look forward to, while others do not. Many enjoy the cooling temperatures, but others see the complete opposite of that as it is a sign that winter is coming. Regardless of opinion, the fall season has been proven to promote significant benefits in life, mood, and health.

    Researchers at Sunnybrook Health Center at the University of Toronto conducted a study where they found a very interesting fact about people’s productivity.

    “In the late summer and early fall participants concentrated better and had improved memory, focusing and thinking skills, which lead to greater productivity,” the study states.

    The study also found that dementia is more likely to develop in the spring and the winter. Another interesting fact that the study found is that in spring and winter the brain is on average 4.8 years below what it should be.

    Mrs. Laura Donovan, astronomy and meteorology teacher, loves the fall and enjoys the benefits that it has.

    Donovan states, “I think it’s a good transition into winter because if we went from really hot weather to really cold weather all at once, that would be kind of a shock to people so I think it’s beneficial to have this transition season.”

    Dr. Neha Vyas, a family medicine doctor with the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio has information published on Cleveland Clinic’s website, health.cleveland.org, which states, “The change of temperature doesn’t make you sick but changes in weather conditions can predispose you to getting sick.”

    In addition, students have their opinions of the fall. Senior Amelia Stanton is aware of fall’s health benefits and is particularly fond of the beautiful views and activities that come with the fall season.

    Stanton states, “I like the fall because I like the cool weather, I like when the trees change colors, and I love to hike in the fall.”

    Not only do people become more productive, the temperature is ideal to get quality exercise and to go outside with the high temperatures ranging from close to seventy degrees to the low fifties in the state, according to weatherspark.com.

    Some types of exercises and activities that people can do in the fall are hiking, playing sports, walking, biking and many more. These exercises may not seem comfortable to do in the summer as the temperatures are extremely hot, but they can be more comfortable to do in the fall.

    Those looking to leaf peep, can check out the map for peak leaf peeping here: https://www.depdata.ct.gov/forestry/foliage/foliage map.htm as shown in our Friday, Upcoming Events email. The time to see the best color for foliage is estimated to start from October 3-November 8.