Elixir of life
lies within our own outlook.
Old age will be great!
Meher Baba was on to something with when he came up with his adage “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”. The Indian spiritual master’s famous saying received global recognition in Bobby McFerrin’s chart-topping a cappella hit in 1988 (and later at the turn of the century thanks to ‘Big Mouth Billy Bass’).
Yet new research suggests that Meher Baba was on to something when he coined is famous phrase. Koga et al. (2022) tracked the longevity of more than 150,000 women over the course of 26 years and examined factors influencing morbidity and mortality including ethnicity, lifestyle and psychological outlook.
The researchers found that higher optimism was associated with longer lifespans, overall and across racial and ethnic groups. Whilst optimism is partly heritable, research shows that “optimism is modifiable with accessible methods that target optimism such as writing exercises and cognitive-behavioural strategies”.
All too often we focus on factors that negatively impact longevity. We should take a leaf out of Meher Baba’s book, be happy and remember the importance of thinking that the glass is half-full.
Intriguingly, whilst this research in the USA suggests the link between optimism and longevity, a study released earlier in 2022 by Okuzono et al. suggests that contrary to the latest research from Western populations, optimism is unrelated to longevity among Japanese older adults.
Original research:
Koga et al. (2022) https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.17897
Okuzono et al. (2022) https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-022-00511-8