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I know a life extensionist who is facing more challenges now than most people face in a lifetime. Yet he remains upbeat and optimistic. I know a person who is not interested in extreme life extension who is crushed by a disruptive, but temporary challenge, which has sunk him into a deep state of depression.

 

About 90% of the members of the life extension community who I know would fit more in the first profile. They seem to function well in the face of adversity, bounce back from setbacks and are overall, healthier than average.

 

I find that the majority of people with no interest in extreme life extension tend to react more negatively to challenges, and also tend to be less healthy.

 

Then I came across an article by Paul J. Rosch, M.D. It illustrated how optimistic people live longer. Here are some excerpts:

 

Numerous studies support the belief that people with an upbeat and positive perspective tend to be healthier and enjoy longer lives than those who are gloomy and cynical about the future. Always expecting the worst was linked to a 25 percent higher risk of dying before age 65 in a very long-term California study. In another report on senior citizens, researchers rated 1,000 Dutch men and women aged 65-85 with respect to their degree of optimism, health and longevity. Over the next 10 years, participants classified as being very optimistic had 55 percent fewer deaths from all causes and 23 percent less heart-related deaths than highly pessimistic controls.

 

So Stay Happy and Save Your Life

 

The article cites study-after-study proving optimism extends your life. For example, Harvard researchers found cardioprotective effects when they followed 1,306 men who had been rated for optimism and pessimism in 1986. During the next 10 years, men reporting high levels of optimism had almost half the risk of suffering any coronary complications compared to peers classified as being very pessimistic.

 

Optimists and happy people may also be less likely to suffer a stroke according to a University of Texas study of 2,478 senior citizens. Researchers confirmed that increasing depression ratings were associated with a significantly higher incidence of stroke.

 

Similar rewards were reported in a study of 600 people over age 50 in a small Ohio town in 1975. Researchers found that optimists who viewed aging as a positive experience lived about 7.5 years longer than participants with a much darker perspective. One might argue that people in poorer health would be more apt to have negative responses and also be more likely to die over the next 23 years.

 

However, even when health, socioeconomic status, overall morale, loneliness, race, sex, and other possible confounding factors were taken into account, a positive view of aging was still highly correlated with significantly increased longevity. Indeed, this advantage was far greater than that afforded by lowering blood pressure or reducing cholesterol, each of which was found to lengthen life about four years.

 

In a Mayo Clinic study, optimists:

 

·         Had fewer limitations due to physical health.

·         Had less pain.

·         Felt more energetic most of the time.

·         Felt more peaceful and happy most of the time.

·         Had fewer problems with work or other daily activities as a result of their emotional state.

 

If you’d like to see the whole article, go to:

 

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2005/09/03/why-do-happy-people-and-optimists-live-longer.aspx

 

Over and over, I see evidence of how attitude contributes to health and longevity. If you look for the correlation, you’ll find it too. But more importantly, look within.