Blue Monday is (still) just a PR gimmick, actual science shows

Feeling a bit down today? Don't blame the date blame the date's tendency of bringing up a tired, old and long-debunked theory about "the most depressing day of the year."

Hundreds of international media outlets have referred tothethird Monday of Januaryas "Blue Monday" since 2005, when a British travel agency issued a press release declaring it so.

That release, issued by the now defunct Sky Travel holiday company, cited a pseudo-mathematical formula commissioned from a U.K. psychologist as proof that such factors as weather, debt levels and failed New Year's resolutions made thisthe most depressing time ofthe year.

British scientists started comingout against the "research" almost immediately, prompting Cardiff University to eventually issue a statement distancing itself from the "Cardiff Universitypsychologist"who'd developed the formula.

"Cardiff University has asked us to point out that Dr. Cliff Arnall, mentioned in the article below, was a former part-time tutor at the university but left in February," reads a correction at the top of a 2006 piece from the Guardian's Bad Science column.

Arnallwent on to promotea similar formula for the "happiest day of the year"as part of a paid gig for anice cream company's marketing campaign, andwasbilling himself as a "freelance happiness guru" in 2010 when he admitted to the Telegraphthat his Blue Monday theory was"not particularly helpful."

"I was originally asked to come up with what I thought was the best day to book a summer holiday," he said at the time. "But when I started thinking about the motives for booking a holiday there were these factors that pointed to the third Monday in January as being particularly depressing," he said.

"But itis not particularly helpful to put that out there and say 'there you are'," he noted. "It is almost a self-fulfilling prophecy that it is the most depressing day."

Indeed, it can behard not to feel a bit glumwhen you've got every other news outlet,Facebookpostand co-worker reminding you that Januarysucks.

And in fact,there is some truth to the claim that a lack of sunlight is linked to sadness.

But stories about Blue Mondaylacking credibilityhave becomenearly as common as junkweb listicles about "how to beat Blue Monday" in recent years, and yet we continue to see more content focused on this"most depressing day" pop up every January.

It's puzzling to many in science and journalism that the myth persists despite thorough evidence debunking it not to mention additional, more recent layers of criticism over how Blue Monday'streatment makeslight of mental illness,which can occur any time.

Why is Blue Mondaystill a thing?

One might presume that money has something to do with the theory's continuing popularity online, based on the number of promotions, campaignsandsponsored content pieces created for Blue Monday 2016.

Some companies stick with tweeting hip GIFs and pictures of baby animals to cheer up their followers on Blue Monday without pushing any particular deals.

This, while annoying to some, is relatively chill in terms of #BrandsOnTwitter.

Others promote special offers geared towards helping consumers "Beat the Blue Monday blahs," as Ottawa's Metro newspaper describes theBlue Monday deal this year atCineplexmovietheatres.

Somebusinesses have gone even further in promotions this year.

Toronto-based personal loans firm Borrowellcommissioned its own Blue Monday survey "to understand how Canadiansfeel" abouttheir credit card debt, and the Canadian marketing director forcoupon purveyor Ebates wrote this promotion-loadedcolumn about "how to perk up" Blue Monday for the Huffington Post.

A bus company in Scotland is promoting its own "super" bus driver for Blue Monday, as well as offering customers a buy-one-get-one deal.

"With Monday (Jan 18th) widely recognized as the most depressing day of the year (Blue Monday), a bus driver in Aberdeen is helping to bring back the smiles to customer faces by donning fancy dress to help them get from A to B," reads a release on First Aberdeen's website.

"The campaign aims to reward regular passengers during January and also inspire people who currently don't travel by bus to consider making it one of their resolutions in 2016."

Buying a tropical vacation from one of themany travel agencies promoting Blue Monday dealsmight not be the best way to alleviate anydebt woes, but there is some truth to the claim that alack of sunlight is linked to sadness.

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which is real, is also known as the winter blues and affects some 10 per cent of all Canadians in mild forms, according to the Canadian Mental Health Association.

Major depressive disorder (often referred to simply as depression),on the other hand, isdifferent fromthe blues,anddoctors don't treat it with cheap movie tickets, couponsor transportation deals.

"Depression, also known as clinical or major depression, is a mood disorder that will affect one in eight Canadians at some point in their lives," reads CMHA'sB.C.website."It changes the way people feel, leaving them with mental and physical symptoms for long periods of time."

"One of the most important things to remember about depression is that people who have it can't just 'snap out of it' or make it go away," the health resource continues.

"It's a real illness, and the leading cause of suicide."