Happy people don’t get heart disease
Accentuating the positive can help you live longer. People who are generally happy and satisfied with their lives are far less likely to develop heart disease – and the happier you are, the lower the risk goes.
The effect is so significant – people satisfied with their lives are 13 per cent less likely to develop coronary heart disease – that the researchers believe it is an approach that has genuine therapeutic value.
It could be especially effective in people who are currently at greater risk of heart disease, because of their weight, diet or lifestyle.
Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health assessed the happiness of around 8000 British civil servants, who were measured for their levels of satisfaction on their job, family life, sex life and themselves.
(Source: European Heart Journal, 2011; doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehr203).