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Study: Rising temperatures cause mood swings

2025-08-23 14:56:00, Kuriozitete CNA

Scientists analyzed over a billion social media posts to discover how scorching temperatures are affecting our moods.

If the scorching temperatures are making you lose your cool, you're not alone. New research suggests that our warming world may be the cause of your bad mood.

Using social media, scientists from MIT and institutions around the world tracked people's emotions and linked them to days of extreme heat.

They analyzed more than 1 billion social media posts from more than 150 countries. Their findings? Heat doesn't just make us sweat, it also makes us irritable.

The study, published in the journal One Earth, found that when temperatures rise above 35°C, our collective mood drops significantly - especially in low-income countries.

They found that when temperatures rose above 35°C, the sentiments expressed in these posts became about 25 percent more negative in low-income countries and 8 percent more negative in high-income countries.

The effects of heat on mood in low-income countries were three times greater than those found in more economically affluent settings. The researchers say this highlights the importance of incorporating adaptation into future climate impact projections.

Is the hot weather making us angry?

As for why, there are a variety of theories. Some suggest that the weather can change the biology of our brains, with Finnish scientists linking high temperatures to levels of serotonin - an important brain chemical that regulates happiness, anxiety and our overall mood. Others suggest that hot weather increases testosterone levels, making us more aggressive.

However, it's important to remember that most studies show a correlation between hot weather and bad mood or behavior. This doesn't necessarily mean that these factors directly influence each other - many other factors may be involved. Will our moods be worse in the future?

Looking ahead, the researchers used long-term global climate models to estimate how rising temperatures could affect our emotional well-being by the end of the century. Even assuming that societies gradually adapt to the heat, their projections suggest a 2.3% decline in global well-being by 2100, driven by higher temperatures.

The researchers acknowledge that there is still much to be learned. First, social media users do not reflect the full population. Young children and the elderly, groups that are particularly vulnerable to extreme heat, are underrepresented on platforms like X and Weibo. This means that the actual emotional cost may be even higher than the study suggests.

While infrastructure can help us adapt to the physical effects of heat, research shows that understanding and preparing for its emotional impact may be just as critical./ CNA