<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"A few years ago, I sat next to a Canadian witch doctor on a plane, and she told me that winter and suffering is the key to creativity. Well, science just proved that witch WRONG. As it turns out, our brains may actually be way more efficient in the summer. \n\nResearchers have discovered that our senses are sharper in the summer and duller in the winter, making the winter blues the ultimate source of distraction and daydreams. Apparently, our brains are way better at paying attention when days are long, with peak attention span efficiency happening around the summer solstice in June. \n\nTo figure this out, scientists deprived 28 people of sleep for two days and then kept them in dim light for another three days because &amp;quot;genuine seasonal rhythms of human brain function are difficult to measure.&amp;quot; They did this throughout the year. \n\nAfter all of this, people still performed better at tests of attention in the summer. This suggests the human body takes its cue from an internal clock rather than external sunlight. In other words, our bodies may actually have seasons without any outside influences. \n\nThe scientists also found that &amp;quot;working memory&amp;quot; AKA short-term memory is most efficient during autumn equinox in late September and is at its worst during the spring equinox in March.\n\nSince the study was small and only showed an association between your brain and the seasons, it&amp;#39;s not necessarily a link. That said, Scientific American says that this information may help people dealing with seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and other mood disorders that fluctuate over the course of the year. Bonus: even if you don&amp;#39;t have SAD, now you can blame your lack of focus on the weather. \n\nRelated:  12 Feel-Good Valentine&amp;#39;s Day Gifts to Give Yourself\n\nCheck out Teen Vogue\u2019s February issue cover star, Zo\u00EB Kravitz.\n\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.teenvogue.com/story/its-harder-to-concentrate-during-winter-study>