Why are people from Denmark so happy? It's all in their DNA

University of Warwick researchers investigated why Danes are so happy



The country regularly tops polls of the world's happiest people



They found there was a correlation between Danish genes and happiness



And they also discovered people with Danish ancestry were more likely to have a positive outlook on life



Last year's World Happiness Report ranked Denmark as the happiest nation on Earth



Studies have shown that people from Denmark are officially the happiest people on Earth, and now scientists think they know why.



According to research from the University of Warwick, genetics could be the key to explaining a nation’s levels of happiness.



Researchers who looked at survey data from 131 countries found that the closer a nation was genetically to the Danes, the happier its people were.



University of Warwick researchers have investigated why Danes are so happy (stock image shown). The country regularly tops polls of the world's happiest people. They found there was a correlation between Danish genes and happiness, while people with Danish ancestry were also happier

Economists at the University's Centre for Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (Cage) looked at why certain countries top the world happiness rankings.



THE WORLD'S HAPPIEST PEOPLE

Last year's World Happiness Report from the United Nations ranked Denmark the happiest nation on Earth, with an average life satisfaction score of 7.69 out of 10.

It was followed by four other northern European countries, Norway, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Sweden.

The UK was ranked 22nd on the list of 156 countries, with a score of 6.88.

The world's most miserable country was said to be Togo, west Africa, which managed only 2.93 on the satisfaction scale. Other African countries also dominated the bottom of the ratings.

Denmark has also topped the European Commission's "Eurobarometer" table of citizen well-being and happiness every year since 1973.

The research, published by the German economic research institute IZA in its Discussion Paper series, could help to solve the puzzle of why a country like Denmark so regularly tops the world happiness rankings.



Danish birth was also associated with specific versions of a gene that influences brain levels of the mood chemical serotonin.



Compared with people from other countries, Danes were less likely to possess a short version of the gene linked to low levels of life satisfaction.



‘The results were surprising,’ said Economist Dr Eugenio Proto from Cage.



‘We found that the greater a nation's genetic distance from Denmark, the lower the reported wellbeing of that nation.



‘Our research adjusts for many other influences including Gross Domestic Product, culture, religion and the strength of the welfare state and geography.’



The researchers used data on 131 countries from a number of international surveys including the Gallup World Poll, World Value Survey and the European Quality of Life Surveys.



The researchers linked cross-national data on genetic distance and well-being.

Whether money can buy happiness or not (stock image shown) is cause for debate, but it seems one sure-fire way to ensure your well-being is simply to have Danish DNA. The new research was published by the German economic research institute IZA in its Discussion Paper series

The second form of evidence looked at existing research suggesting an association between mental wellbeing and a mutation of the gene that influences the re-uptake of serotonin, which is believed to be linked to human mood.



Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that helps to relay nerve signals.



‘We looked at existing research which suggested that the long and short variants of this gene are correlated with different probabilities of clinical depression, although this link is still highly debated,’ Dr Proto continued.



‘The short version has been associated with higher scores on neuroticism and lower life satisfaction.



‘Intriguingly, among the 30 nations included in the study, it is Denmark and the Netherlands that appear to have the lowest percentage of people with this short version.’



A deficiency of the chemical in the brain is strongly linked to depression while levels are boosted by the drug Ecstasy.



Compared with people from other countries, Danes were less likely to possess a short version of the gene linked to low levels of life satisfaction. 'The results were surprising,' said Economist Dr Eugenio Proto from Cage. In this library image a group of folk dancers in California celebrate the 'Danish Days' festival in 1964

The final piece of evidence looked at whether the link between genetics and happiness also held true across generations, continents and the Atlantic Ocean.



Co-author Professor Andrew Oswald, also from the University of Warwick, said: ‘We used data on the reported well-being of Americans and then looked at which part of the world their ancestors had come from.



‘The evidence revealed that there is an unexplained positive correlation between the happiness today of some nations and the observed happiness of Americans whose ancestors came from these nations, even after controlling for personal income and religion.



‘This study has used three kinds of evidence and, contrary to our own assumptions when we began the project, it seems there are reasons to believe that genetic patterns may help researchers to understand international well-being levels.

