The power of mindset and its effect on our lives has been widely studied in recent years and the research continues to show that our thoughts and outlook directly influence the decisions we make, our attitude towards and experience of life, and even our physical health.
By understanding and utilising the power of your mindset, you can start to take control of your life and how events play out. The journey starts with developing a mindful awareness of the thoughts in your head, what stories you are telling yourself, and how your perspective can influence reality. Your mindset is the key that unlocks your full potential and allows you to become the best version of yourself; so take the time to focus on cultivating an empowering mindset that will help you reach all of your goals in 2023.
For those of you who may be on the fence about the power of your mindset…here’s a study just for you! Crum, Corbin, Bromwell and Salovey (2011) found that even chemical responses in the body can be affected by our mindset, demonstrating the immense power of our thoughts and beliefs.
Ghrelin is a hormone that we produce in our stomach that is associated with our response to food and how full we feel. It sends messages to our brain to become hungry and seek out food. It’s termed the ‘hunger hormone’ because it stimulates appetite, increases food intake and promotes fat storage. When administered to humans, ghrelin increases food intake by up to 30%; it circulates in the bloodstream and acts in the hypothalamus, an area of the brain crucial in the control of appetite.
To study the effects of Ghrelin in the context of mindset, researchers divided participants into two separate groups and measured their levels of stomach Ghrelin. They then presented each group with a milkshake; one was labelled as being healthy- low-fat content, low sugar and natural ingredients etc…while the other subjects were warned about its unhealthy nature due to its high-fat component as well as high-calorie count. However – unbeknownst to all participants – they were actually identical shakes.
Once the milkshakes were finished, researchers took another Ghrelin measurement – revealing a remarkable outcome. Those who viewed the shake as unhealthy felt fuller more quickly due to lower amounts of Ghrelin circulating in their bodies; whereas those viewing it as nourishing kept higher levels of Ghrelin circulating – leaving them with more of an appetite.
Now, Ghrelin is a chemical messenger in your body that should be responding to the food, or in this case, the full milkshake the subjects had each just drunk, and yet it didn’t. It was their mindset about the milkshake that made the difference. It was psychologically mediated by whether you believed what you were consuming was healthy or unhealthy.
These findings showed that how we view things, our mindset, can actually influence physiological changes in our bodies.
Mindsets are powerful – as you go about your day, be mindful of your mindset (pun intended) and the impact it may be having on your experience and performance in life.
References: Crum, A. J., Corbin, W. R., Bromwell, C., & Salovey, P. (2011). Mind over milkshakes: mindsets, not just nutrients, determine ghrelin response. Health Psychology,