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What's the Difference Between SAD and Winter Blues?
Researchers estimate that 10 million of the U.S. population suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and another 25 million from a milder condition known as "Winter Blues."
The degree of change varies. People who find these changes troublesome and a nuisance, but not necessarily worth seeing a physician about, may be suffering from the "winter blues" or "winter blahs." they complain about feeling down, having less energy, putting on a few pounds, and having difficult getting up in the morning throughout the dark, short days of winter.
Another group of people is patients with SAD, whose changes in mood and behavior are so powerful they produce significant problems in their lives. SAD sufferers feel chronically depressed and fatigued--they want to withdraw from the world and avoid social contacts. They will begin to crave carbohydrates, gain weight, oversleep, and become lethargic. They will be come anxious and irritable.
Dr. Norman Rosenthal, a pioneer in research on SAD and author of the book Seasons of the Mind (Bantam, 1989) theorizes that the brain releases a hormone called melatonin when the body experiences long periods of darkness. Bright light
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