We know from experience that being near the liquid energy of the ocean makes us feel calmer, happier, healthier, and more in control. It’s a water induced sense of peace that Wallace J. Nichols referred to as “Blue Mind” in his 2014 book by the same name. But what’s actually going on—physically and psychologically—to create this H20-triggered high? We combed through university studies, as well as the pages of Nichols’ best selling book, for some of the science behind this watery sense of wellbeing. Advisory: This list is best read in the presence of gently lapping waves.
WHEN A WAVE CRASHES, creating sea spray, invisible charged particles called ions are released into the air. Breathing this air increases oxygen flow while triggering the release of endorphins and serotonin, the body’s “happiness” hormones. In other words, that “surf stoke” we hear so much about? It’s a real thing.
THE SOUND OF THE OCEAN—its harmonic pitch and low volume —can improve mood and lead to relaxation because it triggers the same sensations as meditation. Because the brain interprets the whooshing of the sea as non-threatening noise, it often uses this natural soundtrack to calm the body into sleep, and to block out other noises that might otherwise startle you awake. The result? Especially sweet dreams on the beach.
THE COLOR OF THE OCEAN has a relaxing yet energizing effect on the body—early humans were hardwired to seek out blue (read: clear skies and clean water), and this programming has stuck. Exposure to the color also helps regulate our body clock while increasing creative impulses. The blue wavelengths of the ocean may even help mitigate the effects of seasonal affective disorder.
WE ARE TRANSFIXED by the motion of the ocean (and the glimmer of sunlight and moonlight on this water) because it’s never quite the same, yet there’s a comforting repetition to it. This unusual combo works magic, researchers say, for quieting an overstimulated mind.
WHEN A PERSON IS immersed in the ocean, a 30 percent greater volume of blood gets circulated throughout the body. To allow for this increase, blood vessels need to relax. In order to make this happen, hormone balance is altered to a level more like that experienced during meditation. A feeling of zen is the result.
BECAUSE THE OCEAN engages all senses at once, the mind becomes caught up in what experts call “soft fascination”—in other words, zoning out. In these daydreaming moments, the brain is adept at processing data, making connections and coming up with solutions to problems that may have eluded the beach-goer when actively thinking about them.
SHORT TERM MEMORY is improved around 20 percent by taking a short walk by the water’s edge.
WE FEEL CALMER when we hit the beach, partly because we expect to. It’s a placebo effect for which we can thank pop culture—movies and television have conditioned us to expect tranquility from a watery landscape, so that’s what we get. And the effect isn’t just imagined, researchers say—the placebo response creates real (and really welcome) changes in the brain.
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