I’ve noticed lately that there seem to be loads of people with colds or the remnants of a bout of cold/flu, like a persistent sore or irritated throat, or persistent blocked nose or sinuses that just won’t let go. It seems like this season’s colds have clung on a bit too long for many people.

It is likely that our attitudes play a role here.

Studies have shown that people who experience more positive emotions tend to be less likely to catch colds than those who experience more negative emotions.

For instance, a study led by Sheldon Cohen, a psychology professor at Carnegie Mellon University, recruited 354 healthy volunteers aged between 18 and 54 years old and gave each of them nasal drops containing the cold virus.

Beforehand, each person was assessed for their tendency to experience positive emotions, like being happy, pleased, and relaxed, and their tendency to experience negative emotions, like being anxious, hostile, and depressed. The results clearly showed that those who experienced the most positive emotions were less at risk of developing the cold than those who experienced more negative emotions.

What does this mean for the average person?

It means that we should look at our lives and pay attention to how we’re feeling. Do you often feel stressed, irritable, or hostile? Or do you feel mostly cheery?

The way we tackle the daily situations of our lives can affect our emotions and beyond that our health. Some people see everything as a problem and have a tendency to “make mountains out of molehills.”

This is not meant as a criticism. We have all been there, and this reads true for many of us right now in our lives. It can be a symptom of difficult situations in our lives, tiredness, work or relationship problems, or even dietary factors. These people typically experience more negative emotions.

Others make “molehills out of mountains” and have a tendency to breeze through situations without getting too hot and bothered. Life seems to be easier for them. But for most of us in the western world, we also know that when this reads true for us it’s not always that life is easy but that it is our attitude that makes life easy.

Changing how we look at things can make the difference between experiencing mostly negative emotions or mostly positive emotions in our daily lives.