Pessimists are now given one more reason to turn the page and be more optimistic, according to new research presented Thursday at the American Psychosomatic Society’s annual meeting in Chicago.

 

According to it, optimists live longer, healthier lives than pessimistic, a finding that should encourage many people to change their perspective on life.

Researchers at University of Pittsburgh conducted by Dr. Hilary Tindle analyzed rates of death and chronic health conditions among women participating in Women’s Health Initiative study, which involved more than 100,000 women ages 50 and over since 1994.

 

The women were requested to fill out a standard questionnaire that measured optimistic tendencies based on responses to statements like “In uncertain times, I expect the worst,” or “It's safest to trust nobody.”

 

"These questions prove a general mistrust of people," said Tindle.

 

The researchers found that eight years into the study, optimistic women were 14 percent more likely to be alive than their pessimistic peers. Also, optimistic women were 30 percent less likely to die from heart disease after eight years and less likely to experience high blood pressure, diabetes or smoke cigarettes.

 

“They are less likely to smoke, they are more likely to be active and they are more likely to have a lower BMI [body mass index]. All of these are risk factors that certainly matter for length of life and health,” Tindle said.

 

“I think we really need more research to design therapies that will target people's attitudes to see if they can be modified and if that modification is beneficial to health,” she further said.