Becoming Happier

"A bad habit never disappears miraculously; it's an undo-it-yourself project."– Abigail Van Buren

Did you ever consider or think about the fact that where you live can affect your health? In other words think about your environment and how that can facilitate or impair your health and your happiness. To give an example, I moved to the foothills in Northern California and my home is on a cul-de-sac in a small gated community. I can see nearby homes from my walkway but would need a phone, walkie-talkie, smoke signal or carrier pigeon to communicate with my neighbors. My home is situated on over 11 acres and my backyard is adjacent to BLM land. This gated community regulates the entry of humans but not turkey, deer, bear, mountain lions or other critters. From my rear deck, I can make out the area of the aid station of the 16 mile marker on the Western States 100 mile endurance run as well as the aid station for the Way to Cool 50 km trail race which is roughly a half a mile away as the crow flies. Further, and about a mile from that aid station down Maine Bar is the Tevis Cup trail as well. Talk about location and I am situated right where I want to be. What can be more perfect for me?

The point that I’m making is that my setting or home environment facilitates my pursuit of health, fitness and well-being. I’m able to put on my running shoes, walk out my door and in minutes be running or riding  in nature on the Western states Trail where I might encounter other runners, hikers or people on horseback. Occasionally, I’ll see critters like a bear, mountain lion or deer but usually I am free to enjoy my surroundings without noise, pollution or other interference. I believe I am fortunate to live in this setting and be able to pursue my passion. It is clear that this environment is conducive to my mental and physical health.

In the Wall Street Journal, September 21, 2012, there was an article about a recently published study   by researchers from the University of Chicago, Harvard and other institutions evaluated the effects of Moving To Opportunity which is an experimental federal housing program that began in the 1990s. This federal program offered housing vouchers to more than 2000 low income families so they could move from impoverished areas into mixed income neighborhoods. This population was compared to control group that had similar demographics except they didn’t move to mixed income neighborhoods.

The idea behind this program was to boost education and income by giving mothers and their kid’s access to better housing and schools as well as better job opportunities and social networks. Guess what? Those measures largely failed in that the results demonstrated that there were minimal economic or educational gains.

However, the program was successful using other measures. The researchers found that these families had significantly lower rates of diabetes, extreme obesity, anxiety and stress compared with those participants that stayed in their neighborhoods. Further, these families were much happier with their lives overall. This finding demonstrated the significance and the influence of environment as related to one’s health.

 So take a look at your living situation and ask yourself the question “is my environment conducive to my families mental and physical health?” Another related question might be “what can I do to become healthier and happier?” Whatever you do, keep moving.