The color red can give you a quick jolt of energy, making you quicker and stronger. But researchers say the boost may come at a cost. “Red enhances our physical reactions because it is seen as a danger cue,” explains study co-author Andrew Elliot, professor of psychology at the University of Rochester. “Humans flush when they are angry or preparing for attack,” he explains. “People are acutely aware of such reddening in others and it’s implications.” But threat is a double-edged sword, argue Elliot and coauthor Henk Aarts, professor of psychology at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. Along with mobilizing extra energy, “threat also evokes worry, task distraction, and self-preoccupation, all of which have been shown to tax mental resources,” they write in a paper published in the latest issue of the journal Emotion.
