“Happiness” is such a buzz word these days that it is being studied in all manners and forms. There are regular global happiness surveys and in a new study data from some of these surveys has been analysed and an interesting link has been found between genetic make-up and national happiness levels.
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For the new study researchers analysed data from three nationally representative World Values Surveys taken between 2000 and 2014. The researchers calculated the average national percentages of respondents who reported themselves as being “very happy” and then correlated that with a variety of factors to see if any may be influencing levels of national happiness. The factors examined were climactic information about the harshness of summers and winters, genetic data gathered by Yale University researchers, World Bank economic data, and the historic prevalence of disease-causing organisms in the various nations.
The nations who perceived themselves as happiest were Ghana, Nigeria, Mexico, and Colombia; all nations where the populations show a strong genetic presence of the A allele in the fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) gene variant rs324420. This A allele is involved stopping the breakdown of a substance called anandamide, a naturally occurring endorphin that enhances sensory pleasure and helps to reduce pain. By contrast the nations least likely to rate themselves as “very happy” (Iraq, Jordan, Hong Kong, China, Thailand, and Taiwan) had the lowest prevalence of this A allele.
The researchers note that other factors like the political environment do contribute to perceived happiness but there seems to be a definite genetic link here. The authors also noted that there is a high occurrence of the A allele in equatorial and tropical environments, perhaps as a counterbalance to environmental stressors.
