Mental Wellbeing
Did you know that our eyes can detect more than 10 million colors?
The visual cortex located in the occipital lobe controls our color perception and colors have a measurable biological effect on us such as changing our respiration, blood pressure, or body temperature. For example, red has been shown to increase our galvanic skin response or how much our sweat glands react, far more than green or blue. Certain colors, like red, yellow, and orange have been shown to stimulate the appetite, while other colors, such as blue, can have appetite-suppressing effects.
Color therapists have been harnessing these powerful effects in their therapeutic practices for centuries all around the world and researchers have studied how specific colors impact people within certain environments. A specific shade of pink (Cool Down Pink) was used by Daniela Späth in Swiss prisons during a 4 year study which showed a calming effect on prisoners, reducing hostile, violent and aggressive behavior, but further research is needed to demonstrate this conclusively.
Different cultures assign variable meanings to colors and individual experience can uniquely inform one’s experience of particular colors. While the psycho-physiological effects of color may vary between individuals, the observation that different colors have different psycho-physiological effects is consistent.
Do you have powerful memories associated with certain colors? What colors do you find exciting or calming?
