It amuses me when I hear about studies trying to prove things that seem pretty obvious to me. So when I read about a study led by Hilary A. Tindle, M.D. at the University of Pittsburgh which showed that women who were happy were healthier than those who weren’t, I just thought- Duh! And then I thought that maybe being healthier makes you happier. In any case, happy and healthy go together and and in case you need it there is scientific proof!
Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) followed 97,000 postmenopausal for more than 8 years and found that optimistic women had a lower rate of heart disease than those with higher levels of cynical hostility and mistrust. In fact, cheerful women had a lower risk of dying from any cause.
This is not the first time optimism and better survival has been looked at. A study published in the British Medical Journal last year found that optimistic women had a 25% less chance of breast cancer than pessimists.
Other studies have not found a link between optimism and survival rates but a positive outlook has been found to be linked to reduced pain and eased side effects of cancer treatments.
The whole mind-body connection has achieved much more attention in recent years. Several books are available addressing the subject. Leslee Kegan M.S., FNP from the Mind-Body Medical Institute at Harvard wrote a book and developed a whole program called Mind over Menopause. Check out this link for her essay on the North American Menopause Society site- http://www.menopause.org/positivepassage.aspx. There are some great suggestions about getting into a positive frame of mind.
But if life is really getting you down and you are tending toward crotchity as you get older, what else can you do to put a smile on your face? How about Laughter Yoga. Just going to the web site and looking at the video will crack you up! Go to www.laughteryoga.org.
For the sake of your health find ways to cultivate your happiness. As Abraham Lincoln himself once said-” Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”
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