The Grand Views

Issue date: 1/29/10 Section: Features

Media Credit: Victoria Brady Nearly 25 percent of college students in the US suffer from some degree of the winter blues, better knwon as seasonal depression.

Do you press snooze on your alarm clock more often during the winter months? How about feelings of depression and loss of energy? Do you seem to lack concentration in classes and crave carbohydrate-rich food? You may have a case of the winter blues, commonly known as seasonal depression.

According to Gannett Health Services, nearly 25% of college students in the United States suffer from some degree of the winter blues; the numbers increase the higher the latitude and the cloudier the region. This can lead to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a mood disorder that affects mentally healthy people during winter, or less commonly during summer, spring and fall.

Gannett Health Services claims the most common cause of this seasonal depression is unstable levels of melatonin, a hormone produced during sleep, and serotonin, a neurotransmitter responsible for mood, hunger and sleep. The symptoms get worse as the days get shorter and daylight decreases.

Light therapy is one of the best ways to deal with winter depression, according to many online medical studies. One way to soak in the light is to sit by a 10,000 lux light box for 30 minutes a day. The artificial light mimics natural light outdoors and slows the release of melatonin. These light boxes, however, run anywhere from $150-$300. On a college budget there are cheaper ways of kicking the winter blues.

Buy a bottle of Vitamin D supplements for $10. The sun provides the body with Vitamin D, which increases levels of serotonin in the body. Taking the supplement during the winter will bump the production of serotonin and may help with elevating one's mood.

Many studies have shown exercise is successful in deterring SAD and winter blues. According to the Mayo Clinic website, "Doing 30 minutes or more of exercise a day, for three to five days a week can significantly improve depression symptoms. But smaller amounts of activity - as little as 10 to 15 minutes at a time - can make a difference." During exercise, no matter the intensity, neurotransmitters and endorphins are released; these are "feel good" brain chemicals, according to the Mayo Clinic website.

Although this winter has made it hard, get outside as much as possible. Exposure to natural light is of course the best way to beat seasonal depression. If the depression seems to occur around the same time every year, and if time and money allow, take a trip to a warmer, sunnier climate at the end of fall before winter. Even a weekend getaway with friends or family will do. The natural light, along with something to look forward to, will help fend off depression during the winter months.

As with any form of depression, therapy and antidepressants are always an option as well, though they are to be used with caution. Antidepressants in the Serotonin Selective Reuptake Inhibitor family are commonly used to treat SAD. Medications such as Prozac or Zoloft are designed to boost levels of serotonin, which in turn elevates ones mood.

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