Should you be optimistic in 2004?

A few months ago, while we were having dinner with a well-known, respected Chinese-Filipino taipan, he revealed to us one of his secrets to success: "No worry. No tension. No stress. No fear." These are not only wise words to live by, but as recent scientific studies will bear him out, such an attitude not only adds life to years but also years to life.

The mind/body connection, of course, isn’t a new idea. It’s just that some of the latest research have been particularly intriguing. Among the findings: Optimistic people appear to recover faster from surgery, have less heart disease, and have better mental health than pessimists.

Better still, studies out of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, indicate that optimists live longer than pessimists as well as enjoy a higher quality of life, reporting better physical and social functioning, more vitality, less pain, and fewer limitations due to physical and emotional problems.

But just how does a positive attitude lead to better health — and a possibly longer life? Researchers are looking into three mechanisms.

A Link To Healthy Behaviors

Pessimists tend to take a fatalistic – and hopeless – view, seeking circumstances as being out of their hands. Thus, they see little point in trying to affect health outcomes with changes in their own behavior. But optimists, says Christopher Peterson, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at the University of Michigan, are masters of their own fate because they not only believe good things will happen – they also believe they can make good things happen. That is, they regard their health as something they have control over and therefore may engage in more healthful behaviors such as exercising, eating a healthful diet, drinking alcohol in moderation, not smoking, and avoiding sun damage.

In a study done at the University of Utah by Lisa G. Aspinwall, Ph.D., she found that optimists pay closer attention to information on health risks than pessimists, which in turn may lead them to take action to overcome those risks. As an example, a study of people infected with HIV conducted by UCLA professor of social psychology, Shelley E. Taylor, Ph.D., reveals that the optimists in the group were better at managing the disease. Optimism, Dr. Taylor says, "gets people engaged, in gear, and willing to try things, including taking care of their own health."

Strengthening Social Networks

Not surprisingly, research has found that optimism leads to the development and maintenance of social support systems, which on their own have been correlated with better health. It makes sense. Social network can motivate people to take care of their health by raising their self-esteem and making them feel that they "count." Also, there is a give-and-take that comes with belonging to a social network that promotes a sense of obligation to others to stay healthy – while the network provides the necessary support to do so. For instance, in the event of an illness or injury, a person who has a strong support system will have an easier time to recover than someone who has to go through it alone. Furthermore, the more friends and family in a person’s life, the easier it is to cope during stressful times because there simply are more people around to assist with chores and errands or just lend an ear.

Optimists Reduce Stress Better

Stress situations trigger an automatic response in the body known as the "fight or flight" response, during which hormones like adrenaline and cortisol are released and metabolism, heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, and muscle tension all increase. When this response occurs repeatedly, as with someone experiencing chronic stress, it can have detrimental effects on the body. The constant elevation of blood pressure and heart rate, for example, can contribute to heart disease. And elevated levels of cortisol for prolonged periods can suppress the immune system, making the body susceptible to illness.

Optimism, however, may serve as a buffer against the physiological effects of stress. Research suggests that immune function in optimists is better than in pessimists. It’s not that optimists experience fewer stressful situations than pessimists; they are just more adept at coping with such situations by, for instance, staying calm and collected so they can work through problems and think of solutions rather than feeling like victims. "Optimism enables people to meet stressful and challenging events in life with better resources, so the adverse physical effects of stress are not as severe," says UCLA’s Dr. Taylor.

Becoming An Optimist

But are there ways to turn a pessimist into an optimist so he/she can reap the health benefits associated with a positive attitude? That is, is it possible for less optimistic people to reverse their outlook? Martin Seligman, Ph.D., professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, says that people can, in fact, "learn" optimism. The key, as he explains in his recent book, Authentic Happiness (Free Press: New York, 2002), is to undo pessimistic thinking by recognizing and then disputing negative thoughts and beliefs – in other words, by arguing with yourself.

Optimism: A Prescription For Health?

So, do we have medical research to back up all these claims? Does a positive mental outlook promote good health? Shouldn’t we then include optimism as part of our overall prescription for overall health? Recent studies on health and happiness tell more.

Two reports focused on middle-aged patients with cardiovascular disease. In one, doctors evaluated 309 patients who were scheduled to undergo coronary artery bypass surgery. In addition to a complete preoperative physical examination, each patient underwent a psychological evaluation using four questionnaires designed to measure optimism, depression, neurosis, and self-esteem. The researchers tracked all the patients for six months after surgery and found that optimists were only half as likely to require rehospitalization as pessimists. In a similar study of 298 angioplasty patients, optimism was also a plus; over a six-month period, pessimists were three times more likely to have heart attacks or require repeat angioplasties or bypass operations.

Can a sunny outlook also reduce the risk of getting sick in the first place? Another recent report, this time in Finland, suggests it can. Researchers evaluated 616 middle-aged men who had normal blood pressures when the study began. Each volunteer’s mental outlook was assessed with questions about his expectations for the future, and each was evaluated for cardiovascular risk factors such as smoking, obesity, physical inactivity, alcohol abuse, and a family history of hypertension. Over a four-year period, highly pessimistic men were three times more likely to develop hypertension than cheerier souls, even after other risk factors were taken into account. And yet, another study investigating the link between optimism and overall health in 2,300 older adults found that, over two years, people who had a positive outlook were much more likely to stay healthy and enjoy independence in daily activities.

Staying well for two years though is one thing, staying alive for three decades is another. Mayo Clinic researchers reported that optimism is actually linked to survival. They studied 839 patients in the early 1960s and performed a psychological test for optimism-pessimism as well as a complete medical evaluation. When the patients were evaluated 30 years later, optimism was linked to longevity; for every 10-point increase in pessimism on the optimism-pessimism test, the death rate rose 19 percent.

More research is needed to learn how our mental attitude affects health. Perhaps optimists are simply more likely to follow their doctor’s advice and take care of themselves. On the other hand, there is evidence of a direct link between mind and body; for example, mental outlook can alter stress hormones and affect the immune system. Stay tuned for new insights into the connection between happiness and health. And while you’re waiting, it can’t hurt, starting this new year, to look for the silver lining!