A study conducted in the United States revealed that the most optimistic people are 10 percent more likely to live more than 90 years than the least optimistic people.
According to research published in the Journal of the American Geriatric Society (Journal of the American Geriatrics Society) and conducted by a group of scientists from Harvard and Boston universities, 159,255 women were followed.
As a result of the tests, the scientists concluded that optimism may be associated with a 5.4 percent increase in human life expectancy, that is, an average of 4.4 years, and noted that these results are also valid when depression, chronic heart disease, and social and economic conditions are taken into account.
The scientists recalled in the article that exercise is widely considered important for health and that regular exercise prolongs human life between 0.4 and 4.2 years.
“Our findings suggest that the effect of optimism may be at a level as high as that of exercise,” he said.