Do you want to know the key to living longer? It could as simple be as thinking and feeling younger than you really are.
New research proves that people who believe that they are younger than their actual age have a lower death rate than those who feel older than their age.
Living Longer
JAMA Internal Medicine online published this new research.
In a study that collected data from 6,489 participants who had an average age of 65.8 years about how old they felt. The study reported that many felt a little less than 10 years younger than they were. These participants did not feel like they were as old as their real age. The average was to feel about three years younger but there was a small percentage (4.8 percent) who reported feeling a year or more older than they really were.
Researches from the University College London checked in on these people throughout the following eight years. They discovered that about 14 percent of those who felt younger than their years had died, compared to 24 percent of the people who felt older and 18 percent of those who felt their age.
How Being Happy Is Healthiest
Research is being conducted to try and understand the differences between these three groups of individuals.
The study concluded, “Possibilities include a broader set of health behaviors than we measured (such as maintaining a healthy weight and adherence to medical advice), and greater resilience, sense of mastery and will to live among those who feel younger than their age. Self-perceived age has the potential to change, so interventions may be possible. Individuals who feel older than their actual age could be targeted with health messages promoting positive health behaviors and attitudes toward aging.”
Dr. Sharon Bergquist of the Emory University School of Medicine is an assistant professor of medicine and a physician who specializes in healthy aging. The information did not take her by surprise.
“Research is showing us that personality can be tied to your destiny,” Bergquist said.
Know What Type of Happy You Are
Optimism and conscientiousness are two of the main personality traits that have been linked to people who live longer with new research.
There is more of a will for someone who has these personality traits to actually do what is necessary for their health and live a healthier lifestyle that can help them live longer.
She went on to say, “Aging well can certainly become a self-fulfilling prophecy.”
Don Colbert, M.D., has been board certified in Family Practice for over 25 years and practices Anti-aging and Integrative medicine. He is a New York Times best-selling author of books such as The Bible Cure Series, What Would Jesus Eat, Deadly Emotions, What You Don’t Know May be Killing You, and many more, with over 10 million books sold. He is the Medical Director of the Divine Health Wellness Center in Orlando, Florida, where he has treated over 50,000 patients.
For the original article, visit drcolbert.com.
