The Effect of Colors on People

Writer: Johnny Abi Younis

Colors—there is quite a huge number of these. And although we don’t seem to notice it, colors could affect our brain in a certain way, changing our mood and the functioning of our entire body. 

Colors really work on our brain in a certain way, affecting our appetite, making us sleepy, agitated, or calm. It also has been proven that first impressions are mostly based on the colors of the clothing or the place. Wearing red for women or blue for men on a first date leads to stronger feelings and affection and maybe this color matching could also lead to another date. As for job interviews, people who wear black are most likely hired. And men are usually more attracted to women wearing red colors.

It is advised to paint rooms according to their utility. For example, different shades of grey are the best options for an office since the color grey is not only classy, but it also indicates maturity and arouses a feeling of calmness and tranquillity. As for bedrooms, pink or blue are the best fit, since they tend to be soothing and calming colors.

The color yellow helps you stay focused as it reduces the production of the hormone responsible of making you sleepy, the Melatonin. Mixing it with orange in a painting could help you lift your mood, and you are very likely to get happier. These two colors usually are appetite-stimulating; that’s why they’re the most used colors in restaurant logos. Red is also very popular in restaurants logos, especially the most frequented ones, like KFC, McDonald’s, Burger King, PizzaHut… because it stimulates inner cravings and is associated with excitement. However, unlike red, orange, and yellow, the color blue is known to be appetite suppressing, therefore if you want to lose weight, you could put something of blue color in your fridge or simply eat in blue dishes.

Another color that is famous in logos is the color black. There’s no doubt that it represents elegance and power, but it also signifies superiority, for this reason it appears in logos of the most popular brands such as Adidas, Nike, Chanel, Gucci, Louis Vuitton…

Not only do colors change our mood, affect our first impression, and suppress our appetite and stimulate certain feelings, but they could also tell a lot about our personalities and the way we think. They also have a huge impact on us; therefore, the color therapy technique is used in some cases.