According to new research, optimism may be as important as the movement to add years to your life.
Researchers who tracked a group of 159,255 women found that optimists lived longer than those who were pessimistic and were more likely to live past the age of 90.
The team concluded that optimism is associated with a 5.4% increase in lifespan, or is the same as adding an average of 4.4 years of lifespan.
This was true even when considering factors such as depression, chronic health, social and financial background.
Experts added: “Notably, exercise is widely recognized as an important factor in health, and studies have shown that regular exercise extends lifespan by 0.4-4.2 years. Therefore, ours. The findings suggest that the effects of optimism can be comparable to those of movement. “
This study, published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, found that the relationship between optimism and longevity was evident in all racial and ethnic groups.
The breakdown of the findings showed that women in the most optimistic group were 10% more likely to live past the age of 90 than women in the least optimistic group.
While lifestyle factors such as women’s ability to participate in exercise and choose healthy foods have had some impact on the findings, researchers suggest that other factors are involved. Did.
These may include the type of support network people have when experiencing difficult times, or their own ability to solve problems and minimize their own health risks.
Questions related to optimism in the study gave scores according to how people responded to positive and negative explanations.
