People who have a positive attitude towards old age live longer than others
Scientists have long noticed that people who are surrounded by family members and have friends live longer than others. And this is not just an assumption. Even many scientific studies have shown an increase in life expectancy in family people. But what does it have to do with it? Versions exist very different. According to one of them, it is easier for a person to survive stress and negative situations when he is surrounded by people close to him who support him. As a result, such people have a more positive outlook on life. This version is also supported by statistics – people who have a positive attitude towards old age in middle age feel better in old age.
How family relationships prolong life
Scientists from Brigham Young University studied the results of 148 studies that were conducted back in 1900. More than 308,000 people took part in these studies and were followed up for more than seven years. As it turned out, people with strong social ties who lived in a family and had friends were 50% less likely to die than those who were single and led an isolated lifestyle.
According to the results of these studies, family life and socializing with friends has the same positive impact on health as quitting smoking. Family life has been even more effective in prolonging life than exercise or weight loss.
Constant communication with loved ones also prolongs life, like quitting smoking.
Most likely, the support of loved ones helps to quickly adapt emotionally to various negative situations and problems, whether it be illness, death of a loved one, problems at work, etc. Resilience reduces the flow of stress hormones that weaken the immune system, increase heart rate, and increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes. In addition, there are other reasons why prolonged stress reduces life expectancy.
Plus, family relationships make you take better care of yourself. And even if a person does not take care of himself, close people take care of him. In addition, family life simply gives impetus to life. A person more positively look at it, which in the end is reflected in the state of health.
How positive thinking affects life expectancy
Scientists at Yale University have noticed that life expectancy is affected by how people think about old age. They have published many studies that show that people who think of old age as an age that has its benefits, such as wisdom, live longer than those who perceive old age as frailty and the end of life.
Positive thinking not only prolongs life, but also protects cognitive abilities from degradation.
One study found that people in their 50s who had a positive view of old age performed better on physical activities and even cognitive tasks over the next 18 years. Moreover, a positive perception of old age provided protection against cognitive decline, even in people who had a genetic predisposition to dementia.
Studies have shown that people with an optimistic view of old age had a 47 percent lower risk of developing dementia than those who viewed old age with anxiety and fear. At the same time, young and healthy people with excellent cognitive abilities, but a negative perception of old age, are much more likely to develop plaques and tangles in the brain, which are pathological signs of Alzheimer’s disease. And the hippocampus of such people, responsible for memory, is reduced in volume three times faster.
Japan has the highest life expectancy
Why does Japan have a high life expectancy?
According to the researchers, Japan is a clear proof of the benefits of positive thinking and a positive perception of old age. This country has one of the highest life expectancies in the world. Basically, scientists attribute this phenomenon to the special genes of the Japanese or nutrition. But Yale scientists have focused their attention on less obvious factors that can also influence this indicator.
As a result, they found that in Japan, older people are much more respected and even revered. There is even a national holiday, Keiro-no-hi, or Respect for the Elders Day. On this day, all the elderly are honored. As a rule, they walk in parks, communicate with each other and can even dine for free in many restaurants.
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Most likely, such respect for the elderly is useful primarily for the young, as they look at old age more positively. This allows you to avoid negative stressful thoughts, which allows you to ultimately extend life. But, of course, other factors also affect life expectancy, such as the absence of bad habits and even the level of air pollution, as we talked about earlier.
