The way you perceive the world can significantly impact your life. Embracing a positive outlook may not only enhance your well-being but could also add years to your life. As Theodore Roosevelt wisely observed, “Believe you can, and you’re halfway there.”
Exceptional Longevity
An
analysis of data from more than 69,000 women in the Nurses’ Health Study and more than 1,400 men in the Veterans Affairs Normative Aging Study found that optimism is specifically related to an 11 to 15 percent longer lifespan. The female participants in these studies had been monitored since 1976, and the men had been monitored since 1986.
Optimism seems to increase the odds of living to the age of 85 or beyond—which is defined as exceptional longevity. These findings were independent of other health conditions and behaviors, such as diet, smoking, and alcohol use as well as mental health conditions and financial means.
Benefits of Optimism
Optimism, as defined by the study published in PNAS in 2019, is “a psychological attribute characterized as the general expectation that good things will happen, or the belief that the future will be favorable because one can control important outcomes.”
Optimism can also be defined as a doctrine that this world is the best possible world.
People are more likely to engage in healthy behaviors when they have an optimistic worldview, according to a 2018 review in Circulation Research.
According to the review, optimistic individuals tend to have goals as well as the added confidence to reach them, making them less likely to engage in unhealthy impulses.
Optimism has also been linked with healthier biomarker profiles, including healthy lipid levels, lower inflammation levels, less heart disease in older men, and improved pulmonary function in older men. Optimism is a protective factor for cardiovascular disease and helps people cope more effectively with stress, anxiety, and depression.
Dr. Sulagna Misra, who is certified in integrative and internal medicine, told The Epoch Times: “We are continually uncovering the deep connection between the mind and body in the context of healing. Individuals with a more positive outlook tend to experience enhanced immune responses, better sleep, healthier eating habits, and increased physical activity.
“These factors contribute to a reduced risk of obesity and cardiovascular disease, improved pain tolerance and management, and overall better psychological and psychosocial well-being.”
Angel Planells, registered dietitian nutritionist, told The Epoch Times that optimism is linked to stronger immune function, which can help decrease illness. It’s also linked to healthier levels of cortisol, which, when chronically elevated, can lead to various health issues.
“Optimists tend to handle stress more effectively by engaging in proactive coping tactics and are less likely to experience the detrimental aspects of chronic stress,” Planells said.
How to Foster a Positive Outlook
Plannels emphasized the importance of staying present and practicing stress management techniques to cultivate greater optimism.
“Staying present through deep breathing and remaining calm, even when you feel like crying, cracking, yelling, or screaming, is crucial. By reframing our thought processes, we can discover the positive aspects or lessons in any situation,” Plannels said.
Plannels further suggested celebrating small victories.
“No matter how large or small, we have to celebrate the wins when they come. Whether it is an improved lab value, a reduction or gain in weight, a decrease in medication, or gaining strength during recovery—they all are wins in my book,” he said.
Misra shared the following tips on how to foster optimism:
- Avoid sensationalism (especially in social media)
- Figure out your specific individual stressors. Learn how to handle the stressors better or how to avoid triggers that may increase stress in the body as much as possible. She suggested working with a therapist, psychiatrist, or other mental health experts to find your stressors.
- Lean heavily into your positive social circle, especially if you don’t have the financial means to get mental help.
- Talk about how you are feeling. “Keeping things inside and keeping it in the dark, is how shame and guilt survive.”
“Balance play with work, get regular exercise, go outdoors, eat nutrient-dense foods, focus on improving quality and quantity of sleep, enhance your social circle, prioritize identifying what is important to you versus what should feel important to you! (No should-ing!),” she said.
Misra added that sensationalism is leading to a “separation between the life we should be living and the life we actually are living. We need to collectively learn how to appreciate what ‘is’ and not what ’should be.’ It is easier said than done and often the saying ‘it takes a village’ applies here.”
“It is not easy to eradicate negative self-talk, it is not easy to change your behavior with respect to eating and sleeping, we cannot change all stressors that we come across, however, the one thing humans can change is our response,” Misra said.
