Runner's 'High'? How About Giver's 'High'?

Interesting [emphasis added]...

According to the Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey, a survey of 30,000 American households, people who gave money to charity in 2000 were 43% more likely than non-givers to say they were "very happy" about their lives... People who give also are less sad and depressed than non-givers...

The happiness difference between givers and non-givers is not due to differences in their personal characteristics, such as income or religion, age, education, politics, sex, and family circumstances...

Of course, it might not be that giving increases our happiness, but rather that our happiness increases the likelihood that we will give... Researchers have investigated this... The result is clear that giving has a strong, positive causal impact on our happiness.

A number of studies have researched exactly why charity leads to happiness. The surprising conclusion is that giving affects our brain chemistry... induc[ing] endorphins that produce a very mild version of the sensations people get from drugs like morphine and heroin...

...or running.