Is there a gene for happiness?, Is happiness genetic and what causes it?, Is it true that 80 percent of happiness is genetic?, is Nigerian’s high happiness index genetic?
Well, we now have an answer backed by scientific research 👇
Nigerians have a special gene that makes them the happiest people in the world – Research
Nigeria ranked highest among nations with the prevalence of A allele which makes them one of the happiest country in the world . A study was carried out to show link between genetic make-up and perceived national happiness, which shows Nigerians has the most people with the A allele making us the happiest people in the world.
According to a new study, people who rate themselves as the happiest are more likely to share a certain gene.
A researcher in a recent summit claimed that this holds true for countries like Nigeria.
For the study, the researcher used data from the World Values Survey (WVS) he gathered.
The WVS is a global research project itself, looking into peoples’ values and beliefs, and how they change over time and in response to what.
From this, she figured out the average percentage of people who reported to be “very happy” from countries around the world, and then looked at climatic data, prevalence of disease, World Bank economic data, and population genetics.
According to the researcher, she found a “strong correlation” between the happiness of a nation and the prevalence of a particular variant of the fatty acid amide hydrolase, or “FAAH,” gene.
This, they say, prevents the breakdown of a particular chemical, anandamide, known to enhance “sensory pleasure” while helping to “reduce pain.”
Those countries that have populations with the highest proportion of the gene variant also report themselves to be the happiest, she said.
Watch the video of her explaining her findings..
According to the UK Telegraph, Thegene, called 5-HTT, is responsible for how well nerve cells manage to distribute serotonin, a chemical produced by the pineal gland in the brain which helps control mood. People with low levels of serotonin – itself nicknamed the ‘happinessdrug’ – are known to be more prone to depression.
The International Day of Happiness celebrated in March this year, ranked Nigeria 85 out of 156 countries and second in sub-Saharan Africa in 2019.
The world’s least happy country is South Sudan followed by Central African Republic, Afghanistan, Tanzania, Rwanda, Yemen, Malawi, Syria, Botswana and Haiti.
Credit: Punch
