Choose your spouse well. If the latter is optimistic in nature, it could well allow you to age healthier. This is the conclusion of an American study from the University of Michigan (United States) which adds that it also helps to lower your risk of Alzheimer’s. These results were published in the journal Journal of Personality.
Healthier lifestyles
The study found a link between a positive partner and better health. “Our partners can encourage us to exercise, eat healthier, or remind us to take our medications, says William Chopik, co-author of the study. When your partner is optimistic and healthy, this can translate into similar benefits for your own life. In reality, you have a brighter future by living longer and avoiding cognitive diseases ”. The researchers followed 45,000 heterosexual couples for eight years to reach their conclusions. They began by measuring participants’ optimism before assessing cognitive functions every two years.
Sharing your life with someone positive would encourage healthier lifestyles. “Optimists lead by example and their partners follow their example ”, continues William Chopik. We are more likely to be physically active and eat better, a lifestyle that plays an important role in preventing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, remembering shared experiences helps keep the memory going.
Optimism can be learned
Good news for dealing with the aging population. “Faced with our rapidly aging population, the identification of factors that allow us to age well, and with intact cognitive functioning, is becoming an increasingly urgent problem., notes the researcher. Our study identified partner optimism as an additional psychosocial factor that could help maximize people’s cognitive functioning throughout life“.
For those who are not optimists by nature, do not panic since the researchers explain that there is evidence suggesting that it is a trait that “is learned “. “There are studies showing that people have the power to change their personality, as long as they engage in things that make them change, develops William Chopik. Part of that is wanting to change. There are also programs suggesting that you have the capacity to develop your optimism.. “
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