Thankfulness might be the "happy pill" we've been wishing for

All that giving thanks you did today might have been beneficial to your health. 

Yes, the practice of gratitude might have countered some of the effects of the fattening food you ate.

Apparently some folks have studied this matter.  Folks like those from Duke University Medical Center, who claim that there is a science to thankfulness, according to an article on an ABC News website titled “Thankfulness linked to positive changes in brain and body.”  Click on the highlighted link to read the rest of this thought-provoking article. 

It seems research has found that the practice of being grateful benefits all our major organ systems.

Dopamine is released into our system by thinking about the good things in our lives, which puts us in a good mood, which increases our state of well being.  

Maybe this is the “happy pill” we’ve all been looking for.

It seems we humans have developed a “negativity bias.”  Our thoughts gravitate toward negativity in a 3:1 ratio, but we have the choice to give our “stinkin’ thinkin’” the boot. 

Family members and friends will thank us, no doubt, and we will reap the benefits of becoming happier and healthier.

If we put this new knowledge into practice throughout the Christmas season, our inner Grinch will gain no new ground.

Let’s banish the “Bah, humbugs!” from our conversations and spread some Christmas cheer around!