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HEALTH

PEOPLE WITH A SENSE OF PURPOSE LIVE LONGER,

STUDY SUGGESTS

BY KASHMIRA GANDER ON 5/24/19 AT 11:10 AM EDT

People who have a sense of purpose in life appear to live longer, according to the latest research linking this outlook to a person’squality of lifeand tobetter physical and mental health.

The authors of the study published in the journal JAMA Network Open looked at data collectedfrom6,985 adults who were signed up to theHealth and Retirement Study on people ages 50 and above in the US. The teamlooked at a group who completed a questionnaire in 2006 about their purpose in life, and used it to come up with a score. On average, the participants were 68.6 years old. Next, the scientists looked at causes of death in the group between 2006 and 2010. Variables included their demographic, marital status, race and education level. Lifestyle choices like smoking and drinking were also noted.

Purpose was defined by the authors as a selforganizing life aim that stimulates goals, promotes healthy behaviors and gives meaning to life.

The data revealed that the stronger the participants felt they had a purpose in life, the lower their risk of dying. Thisresult remained even when the scientists adjusted their calculations for factors that could affect their score, such as a participants’sociodemographic statusand their health.

But scientists don’t know why there seems to be a link betweenpurposefulness and the length of life. One explanationis that the attitudeand overall wellbeing could prevent genes linked with inflammation from being expressed in the body. Meanwhile, lacking a purpose could dampen a person’s motivation to be healthy and active, the authors suggested.

Andrew Oswald, a professor of economics and behavioral science at the University of Warwick, in the U.K.,who studies human happiness, toldNewsweek: “It is as though the mind and body can draw on a pool of immune responses, and a healthy mind allows the body more immune response, in some way that we simply do not understand in 2019. Remarkably, a number of studies seem to show that happy people and people with a sense of purpose live longer.

<https://tinyurl.com/yykc8uu4> Acesso em: 27.05.2019. Adaptado.