Happiness, Inflammation, and Health
- ahwcweb
- 5 days ago
- 6 min read
Is happiness something we stumble upon or something we choose? While life throws curveballs, research increasingly shows that happiness is not just a result of circumstances.
Inflammation and Health
Inflammation is the body’s natural response to injury or infection. Inflammation involves immune cells releasing cytokines: chemical messengers that help fight infection. But when inflammation becomes chronic, it can lead to:
Cardiovascular disease
Diabetes
Depression and anxiety
Autoimmune conditions
Cognitive decline
Living in a constant low-grade, persistent inflammation is often the result of stress, poor diet, lack of sleep, and a sedentary lifestyle.
Why Does Inflammation Interfere with Our Perceived Level of Happiness?
Chronic inflammation disrupts our mental balance in several ways:
Mood and Brain Chemistry: Inflammatory cytokines can cross the blood-brain barrier and affect neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine; key chemicals for mood regulation. Harvard Medical School reports that inflammation in the brain may fuel anxiety and depression by altering activity in mood-related brain regions.
Stress: Stress activates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, increasing cortisol and inflammatory markers. A 2024 study in Frontiers in Science shows that chronic psychosocial stress leads to systemic inflammation (inflammation all over the body), which in turn affects emotional resilience and social functioning.
Positive Thinking and Immune Response: Optimism and happiness are linked to lower inflammation. Johns Hopkins researchers found that people with a positive outlook had significantly lower risk of cardiovascular events, even among those with genetic predispositions. Happiness appears to buffer the immune system against stress-induced inflammation.
Can We Improve Our Happiness?
Psychologists have long studied what makes people happy. One of the most influential findings comes from Sonja Lyubomirsky, a professor at UC Riverside, who proposed the "happiness pie chart":
50% of happiness is determined by genetics (your baseline mood)
10% by life circumstances (income, health status)
40% by intentional activities (your choices and mindset)
That 40% is where choice comes in.
Choose Happiness: How?
Practice Gratitude: “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine, but a broken spirit drieth up the bones.” Proverbs 17:22. Studies show that writing down things you're grateful for, even just once a week, can significantly boost happiness.
Avoid Negativity: “Pleasant words are as honeycomb, sweet to the soul and health to the bones.” Proverbs 16:24. When the mind focuses on negative things, the whole body responds in kind, and the way of inflammation and disease is paved. Optimistic people tend to live longer, cope better with stress, and report higher life satisfaction. We can train our brains to avoid negativity and look for the good. “Casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God; and bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5.
Build Strong Relationships: “Happy is that people, whose God is the LORD.” Psalm 144:15. “Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God.” Psalm 146:5. “He that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he.” Proverbs 14:21. Building relationships with both God and our fellowmen helps take our minds off ourselves. The Harvard Study of Adult Development, one of the longest-running studies on happiness, found that close relationships with God and our fellowmen, not wealth or fame, are keys to a happy life.
Engage in Meaningful Activities: “For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.” Psalm 128:2. A strong link to happiness is engaging in something challenging but enjoyable; Whether it’s painting, teaching, working, or volunteering, doing what matters to you will increase happiness.
Learn the Art of Contentment: “I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” Philippians 4:11. Living in a state of contentment has been shown to reduce anxiety and increase happiness. A study from Harvard found that people are happiest when they are present and content in their current circumstances, even if the circumstances are not the most favorable or ideal.
But What About Hard Times?
Choosing happiness doesn’t mean ignoring pain or pretending everything is fine. It means:
Accepting emotions without judgment
Choosing how to respond
Finding meaning even in the midst of the struggle
Trusting God
The Bible encourages us, “For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our LORD.” Romans 8:38-39.
As Viktor Frankl, Holocaust survivor and psychiatrist, wrote: “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms: to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances.”
Is It Possible to Reduce Inflammation to Improve Happiness?
You can support both health and happiness by reducing inflammation through:
Engaging in Regular Exercise (lowers inflammatory markers)
Eating an Anti-inflammatory Diet (rich in fruits, vegetables, omega-3s)
Daily Bible Reading and Prayer (reduces stress and cortisol levels)
Schedule Social Connection (buffers emotional stress)
Cultivate a Positive Mindset and Avoid Negativity (linked to better immune regulation)
“Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore, despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty.” Job 5:17.
Is happiness something we stumble upon—or something we choose? It’s a decision we make, a mindset we cultivate, and a skill we can strengthen in every situation that life throws at us.
The mind is a powerful tool. How will you start reducing inflammation and increasing your happiness in your current situation?
Blue Skies,
Dana West, RDN, LD, ACLMDIP
Dana holds a bachelors in Dietetics and is board certified in Lifestyle Medicine, with emphasis in human nutrition, physiology and nutrition education. She is registered with the Commission of Dietetic Registration and is licensed with the state of AR. Dana has a passion for helping people embrace health and conquer disease and has been doing so for nearly 30 years.
She is the co-founder and president of Abundant Health Wellness Center with a goal to help you achieve your best health and the creator of the Start a New YOU!® online program to reverse inflammation so you can start feeling better day by day. She hosts 5-12-day reversing disease immersive health retreats to help you put all the pieces together to experience health now.
Dana has written three books:
Start a New YOU!® Cookbook: An anti-inflammatory cookbook avoiding common food allergens with a 2-week menu with all the recipes.
Start a New YOU!® Reflections: A health devotional highlighting the Ten Essentials for Health™ that she covers in the Start a New YOU!® Program to reverse inflammation and chronic disease.
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