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Do you dread the colder months and long for spring? Follow our plan to avoid falling prey to the winter blues...

AFTER the long hot summer, the drop in temperature has made us all feel a bit gloomy. And now experts are predicting an outbreak of people suffering seasonal affective disorder (SAD) as the darker, colder evenings set in and the clocks go back.

Indeed, the latest research has found that as many as one in three of us report seasonal mood changes related to SAD. Yet the majority of sufferers never seek treatment. SAD is also known as the “winter blues” as those affected feel their symptoms begin at the start of autumn.

It’s a mood disorder in which people are negatively affected by the changing seasons and darkening of the summer light. It can lead to depression that has a significant impact on day-to-day life, affecting job performance, family life and friendships. Women are 40% more likely to suffer from SAD than men.

SORT YOUR SLEEP NOW

Waking up exhausted and craving more sleep is common with SAD sufferers. Longer hours of darkness cause increased levels of melatonin – the sleep hormone – making you feel sleepy in the day, but restless at night.

“We often make the problem worse by overriding our natural sleep/wake systems by drinking coffee to stay alert and using alcohol to sedate us at night, throwing our bodies off kilter,” explains nutritionist Linda Foster.

Instead, stick to a routine of going to bed and getting up at the same time to regulate your sleep pattern.

CUT DOWN ON CARBS

SAD sufferers often experience carb cravings, which explains why many of us can’t resist stodgy, comfort food when the weather cools.

Shorter days and a lack of sunshine both reduce our body’s production of serotonin, the ‘happy hormone’.

This makes us crave serotonin-boosting carbs such as white bread, cakes and potatoes.

However, these foods can also cause a sudden spike in blood sugar followed by a crash, triggering tiredness, irritability and weight gain.

Choosing complex carbs such as wholegrains, brown rice and wholemeal bread can satisfy cravings and increase serotonin, while also helping to avoid the unhelpful sugar crash.

GET OUTSIDE

Fewer hours of light as the days become shorter and darker is another SAD trigger, not helped by the fact that we spend longer indoors during the winter.

According to neuroscientist Professor Russell Foster, a key to warding off the condition is to get outside for 30 minutes every day between 6am and 10am.

“Even on an overcast day, light is 500 to 1,000 times brighter outside than in your office or home,” he explains. “Research shows exposure to this early morning light helps reset our internal body clock and fight SAD.”

TAKE SOME VITAMIN D

Sunlight is the body’s main source of vitamin D, and when levels are depleted in th think Stud vitam and Getti coun boos in ex be s battl help for e walk

Low levels of vitamin D may affect serotonin levels and increase depression and SAD symptoms