Science-Backed Benefits of Gratitude on Mental & Physical Health Come With 1 Key Twist

It's widely known that cultivating gratitude can benefit one's well-being, but new science-backed data shows that its effects reach far deeper than expected. While gratitude can understandably affect key aspects of mental health, such as happiness and overall mood, it can also impact physical health.

This information was cited by well-known neuroscientist Andrew Huberman during a recent segment of the Huberman Lab podcast. Huberman not only evaluated the specific correlation between gratitude and several pivotal aspects of mental and physical health, but also noted an interesting twist: the way you practice gratitude may matter more than how often.

The Transformative Power of a Weekly Gratitude Practice on Mental Health

The significance of gratitude's impact on mental health expands to a level rarely discussed, as the host laid out during a recent Huberman Lab episode. However, he also highlighted its positive effects on physical health, an interesting addition to the conversation.

"There's now a wealth of data showing that having an effective gratitude practice can impact a huge number of health variables, both mental health and physical health, in positive ways," Huberman said.

According to studies, Huberman cites that performing a gratitude practice even just once a week can make a noteworthy difference.

"There are studies showing that performing a gratitude practice twice or three times or even just once a week can lead to a pervasive, long-lasting impact on subjective well-being," Huberman said. "People report feeling happier, more meaning, joy, even awe for their life experience simply in response to adding a gratitude practice."

One of the most interesting aspects revealed was also how performing a regular gratitude practice can impact trauma.

"There are studies showing that a regular gratitude practice can provide resilience to trauma in two ways," Huberman continued. "It can provide a reframing and resilience to prior traumatic experiences. So, buffering people against the negative and physiological effects and psychological effects of earlier trauma, but also inoculating them in many ways to any traumas that might arrive later in life."

Huberman drove home the point by citing data that points to gratitude being a "very, very potent way in which you can steer your mental and physical health in positive directions." He explained that a regular gratitude practice positively impacts all social relationships, including romantic relationships, family, in the workplace and at school.

He effectively summed it all by warning that if you're someone who believes a gratitude practice is "kind of weak sauce," you should "buckle up" because the data tells a very different story.

How a Consistent Gratitude Practice Can Impact Physical Health

While Huberman takes a deep dive into the chemical release that's triggered in the brain from gratitude, he highlights a few specific "feel-good circuits" that light up. This includes ones associated with motivation and pursuit, but it also impacts heart rate and breathing, which is an interesting segue into the physical benefits.

Huberman points to the surprising impact that having a consistent gratitude practice can make on reductions in inflammation, improved heart health, immune function, a reduction in stress and even better sleep.

The general consensus highlighted in the data is straightforward: it all points back to things that can trigger a snowball effect, leading to several extremely positive outcomes. In many cases, it may be that someone doesn't even immediately recognize some of the benefits that can come from practicing gratitude once, twice or three times per week. But the returns are surprisingly wide-ranging, making it a very unique conversation.

So, What's the Catch? Not All Forms of Gratitude Are Created Equal

Now for the big plot twist: how the act of giving and receiving gratitude is compared across studies. As impactful as having a consistent gratitude practice can be, Huberman revealed that there's a drastic difference between the two.

"Turns out that the most potent form of gratitude practice is not a gratitude practice where you give gratitude or express gratitude, but rather where you receive gratitude, where you receive thanks," Huberman stated. "This to me was very surprising…receiving gratitude is actually much more potent in terms of the positive shifts that it can create than giving gratitude."

Of course, receiving gratitude makes you feel good, but the million-dollar question is: how can you use this tool if you have to seek out positivity rather than be the one providing it? That's actually part of how it all comes together, because, according to Huberman, giving gratitude essentially rewires your brain.

"Repeated gratitude practice changes the way that your brain circuits work," he continues. "And it also changes the way in which your heart and your brain interact."

"If I haven't mentioned a strong enough incentive for doing a regular gratitude practice until now, this is definitely the one to pay attention to. What they found was [that] a regular gratitude practice could shift the functional connectivity of emotion pathways in ways that made anxiety and fear circuits less likely to be active and circuits for feelings of well-being, but also motivation to be much more active."

In short, having a regular gratitude practice will not only make you feel better but also improve motivation while reducing anxiety and fear. This opens the door to many possibilities, but specifically—and likely—a gratitude approach that's bound to result in the favor being returned by others.

Here's a quick rundown of a few significant mental and physical health benefits of practicing gratitude highlighted by Huberman:

• Improved mood
• Happier/Improved relationships
• Resilience to trauma
• Improved heart health
• Increase in motivation
• Reduced anxiety and fear
• Reduced inflammation
• Better immune function
• Reduced stress
• Better sleep

The positive aspects of making gratitude a regular, constant part of your life can lead to many benefits in unique ways. And while receiving gratitude may be the biggest difference-maker, if you integrate it as a regular practice, don't be surprised if it becomes a full circle. Most importantly, though, at the end of the day, there are benefits from top to bottom, and it doesn't take much to put yourself in a position to see the results.

Related: Conan O'Brien's Viral 'Friendship Red Flags' Include an Outrageous New 'Ghosting' Rule