Cynicism is bad for you health
Optimists really do live longer!
Taking an optimistic view of the world has always been pretty sound advice. However, earlier this year researchers led by Boston University school of medicine, conducted over decades, finally concluded that optimists actually do live longer.
The study found that those who demonstrate greater levels of optimism are much more likely to achieve ‘exceptional longevity’ (living beyond the age of 85). In fact their chances increase by 50% - 70%.
Interestingly this piece of research stops short at directly identifying why this is the case, although it is speculated that those with a positive outlook had healthier habits including exercising more and cutting out smoking. What they did find however, was that optimistic people are able to regulate their emotions and bounce back from difficulties more effectively.
This is not the only research conducted on our mindset. In 2013, a study published in the journal Biological Psychiatry found that British civil servants who ranked highly on the scale for cynical hostility had on average shorter telometers than those who ranked lower on the scale.
Telometers are pieces of repetitive DNA that sit at the end of each chromosome in your cells and help protect them from damage during cell division. As we get older they naturally shorten increasing the risk of cell damage and cancer.
So, to remain healthy, you may want to adopt a positive outlook. Your telometers will remain longer as a result!
What neither of these pieces of research are saying is we should aim for remorseless joviality. Sadness, for example, is a part of the human condition. Everyone will at some point experience disappointment, thwarted ambitions etc. But we must guard against these setbacks becoming a consistent state of despair.
If we want to perform at our best, present the best version of ourselves, and look after our wellbeing at home and at work, we should consider our mindset and take appropriate steps to challenge ourselves when it’s not in a helpful place.
‘Players’ are optimistic whilst remaining realistic, grounded and pragmatic
Citations:
'Optimism is associated with exceptional longevity in 2 epidemiologic cohorts of men and women' - published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Authors: Lewina O. Lee, Peter James, Emily S. Zevon, Eric S. Kim, Claudia Trudel-Fitzgerald, Avron Spiro III, Francine Grodstein, and Laura D. Kubzansky.
'The Telomere Effect' - by Elizabeth Blackburn and Elissa Epel