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Health

08th Jun 2019

Feeling stressed and anxious? Paint your walls THIS colour and feel the difference

Trine Jensen-Burke

colour

Up for some weekend DIY?

How are your stress levels, mum? Feeling like your life is moving at 120 miles per hour these days, and catch yourself mentally writing to-do lists in bed at night, desperately trying to keel all those infamous balls in the air?

Yep – us too.

And look, to an extent, this is all just part and parcel of modern family life, unfortunately, but luckily; there are thing we can all do to at least try to combat some of this stress.

How? Well, according to experts, you can start by painting your walls in a colour that will instantly-stress and calm you down.

Recently, a large study conducted by papermaker G.F. Smith found that the colours most people claim to love, are greens and blues. To come to this conclusion, researchers began by polling more than 26,000 participants from 100 countries about their favorite colors over a four-month period in 2017. Participants submitted their favorite color, as well as an explanation for why they believed they were drawn to the specific hue. And although the results included just about every color imaginable, it was blues and greens that came out on top, according to MyDomaine, with a shade of blueish green called Marrs Green earning the title of world’s favorite color.

 

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Simply exquisite… | by @jeanstofferdesign , location: Michigan | #navydecor #navywall #accentwall #newconstruction #renovation #homeremodeling

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And this, as it turns out, is mostly due to the fact that these colours act as instant stress busters.

In fact; according to Mindbodygreen, when people look at these colors—specifically navy blue—their heart rate physically lowers, creating a feeling of calm and relaxation.

One of the authors of the G.F. Smith study, Professor of psychology at the University of Sussex, Anna Franklin, is not surprised by this, and points out that many studies have investigated the link between color and emotion.

“First, the more saturated the color is, the more it is associated with excitement and stimulation,” Franklin explains. “Second, the lighter the color, the more it is associated with calmness and relaxation.”

The professor adds that many studies before this one have also found that blue and green, specifically, are associated with feeling calm and relaxed.

 

 (Feature image via Amber Interiors/Instagram)