Study finds correlation between happiness and longer life

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Study finds correlation between happiness and longer life

The Los Angeles Times “Booster Shots” blog reports that according to a study by epidemiologists at University College, London, “happiness is good for your health.” The results were reported in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science.

USA Today reports that the study “found that those who reported feeling happiest had a 35% reduced risk of dying compared with those who reported feeling least happy.”

HealthDay quotes study co-author Andrew Steptoe, who said, “the study … points to a fascinating link between how happy we feel on a moment-to-moment basis and survival.” He added, “The challenge now is to establish what the underlying processes are, and whether we can harness these to improve people’s health.”

If you’re interested in studying more about this topic, you may want to consider picking up a copy of my book, 10 Essentials of Happy, Healthy People: Becoming and staying highly healthy. Signed copies of the book are available here. Also, a free study guide for the book, for personal or small-group use, is available here.

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