How does our attitude to aging impact health?
A Yale study published in 2002 by psychology researchers “found that older individuals with more positive self-perceptions of aging, measured up to 23 years earlier, lived 7.5 years longer than those with less positive self-perceptions of aging.”
In other words, a positive attitude towards aging will help you live longer.
This movement towards “positive aging” or “healthy aging” is the newest buzz phrase. As our population continues to age and live longer, we wonder what it means to live healthy and happy lives.
Negative Aging
In America, we live in a society searching for the fountain of eternal youth. Young is viewed as healthy, and old is seen as used up and ready to be discarded. Often aging is seen as a decline into a disease state.
Age discrimination, or ageism, places less value on the old. This translates into a negative self-attitude as we age. Older people begin to feel useless, withdraw from society, become depressed, and live shorter lives.
Positive Aging
How can we shift our attitudes towards aging? What if we considered aging a normal part of the life cycle instead of a decline or disease? What if we worked towards integrating all ages into active participants in society? How can we support positive aging as a society?
Positive aging is a holistic approach to healthy aging that incorporates physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, and social wellbeing. Successful aging allows us to continue to do things that bring us meaning and purpose–but also to recognize age as a part of the normal life cycle and optimize each stage. We must recognize and respect the gifts of each stage of life: the vigor of youth, the wisdom of age….
We are not in control of all aspects of our lives. Disease states need to be treated at all ages. However, from research on positive aging, we recognize lifestyle changes that we can modify for successful aging: the need for regular physical activity, mental exercise, healthy diets, nurturing relationships, and a sense of purpose in life.
What is your attitude to aging?
Move towards positive thinking about aging and live longer.
References
- Rowe, J. W., & Kahn, R. L. (1997). Successful aging. The Gerontologist, 37(4), 433-440.
- Baltes, P. B., & Smith, J. (2003). New frontiers in the future of aging: From successful aging of the young old to the dilemmas of the fourth age. Gerontology, 49(2), 123-135.
- Levy, B. R., Slade, M. D., Kunkel, S. R., & Kasl, S. V. (2002). Longevity increased by positive self-perceptions of aging. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(2), 261-270.
- Lachman, M. E., & Agrigoroaei, S. (2010). Promoting functional health in midlife and old age: Long-term protective effects of control beliefs, social support, and physical exercise. PLoS One, 5(10), e13297.
- Park, C. L., Malone, M. R., & Suresh, D. P. (2016). Examining optimism and hope as protective factors of well-being in older adults. Journal of Happiness Studies, 17(1), 1-12.
- Pressman, S. D., & Cohen, S. (2005). Does positive affect influence health?. Psychological Bulletin, 131(6), 925-971.