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Ill Winds
Fri Jan 16, 2004
Listen in RealAudio 
Some high winds blow down trees and houses, but there are also winds that bring us
down...emotionally. Hi, I'm Bryan Yeaton for The Weather Notebook.
The writer George Eliot remarked: "Certain winds will make men's temper bad." Europeans know
such winds quite well, and in many instances, crimes of passion have been judged less severely
when committed during such weather conditions.
Most often these winds are hot and dry. In Europe, they blow from the North African deserts
across the Mediterranean. They go by such names as the Mistral in France, the Sirocco in
Italy, the Foehn in Germany. We have them in North America too: California's Santa Ana and the
Rocky Mountain Chinook. They can bring feelings of anxiety, stress, depression, and sleepless
nights as they sweep o'er the land.
Research by European and Israeli biometeorologists suggests the culprit may be an abundance of
positively-charged ions in these so-called Witches' Winds. They believe this causes the body
to over-produce serotonin, a hormone that can be a natural tranquillizer in low dosages, but
at high levels produces a number of negative reactions. Some researchers think that positive
oxygen ions alter blood chemistry when inhaled, and, in sensitive people, the body reacts by
producing serotonin.
Ill Winds are generally extremely dry, which readily produces positive ions; they arrive
bringing a rapid rise in air temperature which can alter mood.
German studies estimate a third to a quarter of the population are affected by Ill
Winds.
Thanks to our contributing writer, meteorologist Keith Heidorn. Our show is funded by Subaru
and the National Science Foundation. Special funding for The Weather Notebook' cross-country
tour comes from Davis Instruments, at www.davisnet.com.
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