Mood rings are jewelry pieces that change colors based on body temperature to indicate the emotional state of the wearer. The mood ring was a fad in the 1970s and has seen periodic revivals since then. While mood rings may not provide an accurate assessment of emotions, the color changes are triggered by shifts in blood flow which can correlate with mood.
How Mood Rings Work
Mood rings contain thermochromic liquid crystals that are extremely sensitive to changes in temperature. The crystals are sealed underneath the stone of the ring. As the temperature of your skin changes, the crystals shift in structure which alters their light reflection properties. This is what causes the stone to change color.
When you experience different emotions, your blood vessels constrict or dilute which slightly raises or lowers the temperature of your skin. Happy emotions like joy or excitement cause increased blood flow to the extremities, heating up the fingers. Negative emotions like anger or fear cause decreased blood flow to the extremities as the body concentrates its resources for fight-or-flight responses.
Mood Ring Color Meanings
While mood ring colors are open to interpretation, some commonly accepted meanings are:
- Black – tense, stressed
- Blue – calm, relaxed
- Green – normal, neutral
- Amber – anxious, nervous
- Brown – sad, depressed
- Grey – very nervous, upset
- Yellow/Yellow-Orange – happy, excited
- Red – angry, passionate
The neutral or “baseline” color is usually a green/yellow green. This indicates normal temperature and emotional state.
What Does An Angry Red Mood Ring Mean?
When a mood ring turns bright red or dark burgundy, this corresponds with the emotion of anger. Anger causes several physiological responses in the body:
- Increased heart rate and blood pressure
- Rapid, shallow breathing
- Clenching of jaw and fists
- Dilation of pupils
- Tensing of muscles
These reactions are triggered by the activation of the sympathetic nervous system in response to a perceived threat or offense. The nervous system initiates the fight-or-flight response, sending blood to the major muscle groups while constricting blood vessels in the skin and extremities.
This decrease in blood flow to the hands and fingers causes them to become cooler in temperature. The drop in temperature changes the structure of the thermochromic liquid crystals sealed inside the mood ring, resulting in a shift to the color red.
Other Causes of a Red Mood Ring
While anger is the primary emotion associated with a red mood ring, other factors can also cause the ring to turn this color:
- Vigorous physical activity – Exercise redirects blood flow to working muscles, cooling hands and fingers.
- Hot ambient temperature – Sweating in hot weather can dehydrate the body and cool the extremities.
- Fever or illness – Infection raises core body temperature which makes hands feel colder.
- Medications – Vasoconstrictors narrow blood vessels, reducing blood flow.
- Menopause – Hormone changes affect thermoregulation.
In most cases, the red color change is temporary and the ring will revert back to a normal baseline color once blood flow is restored and temperature stabilizes.
Accuracy Limitations of Mood Rings
While mood rings rely on a scientific principle of temperature affecting light reflection, they have significant accuracy limitations:
- Colors are open to subjective interpretation
- Temperature changes lag behind emotional shifts
- Other factors like weather and health impact skin temperature
- Emotions are complex and cannot be simplified into color categories
- Slow response times mean short-lived emotions may be missed
Mood rings are best considered as novelty jewelry rather than an accurate predictor of emotions. However, they can still be fun to wear and observe the color variations throughout the day.
Conclusion
A red or dark burgundy mood ring typically signals the emotion of anger due to decreased blood flow to the hands and fingers. However, other factors like illness, menopause, or strenuous exercise can also cool the skin and trigger this color change. While mood rings have limitations in accurately tracking emotions through color, they remain popular jewelry with a fascinating temperature-sensitive mechanism inside.