Being cheerful keeps you healthy.
—Proverbs 17:22
In an analysis of 229,391 participants, cardiologist Dr. Alan Rozanski and colleagues found that optimists were much less likely to have a heart attack than pessimists—and had a lower mortality rate from any cause.
Health columnist Jane Brody suggests assessing your level of optimism based on how strongly you agree with these statements:
- In uncertain times, I usually expect the best.
- I’m always optimistic about my future.
- Overall, I expect more good things to happen to me than bad.
She suggests assessing your degree of pessimism by how you identify with these statements:
- I hardly ever expect things to go my way.
- I rarely count on good things happening to me.
- If something can go wrong for me, it will.
“Being cheerful keeps you healthy. It is slow death to be gloomy all the time” (Prv 17:22).
Optimism is contagious. Be a carrier.