"Optimists live longer, healthier lives than pessimists, U.S. researchers said on Thursday in a study that may give pessimists one more reason to grumble." Had I been the journalist I would have ended that sentence with, 'one good reason to make a different choice.' But I digress.
"Researchers at University of Pittsburgh looked at rates of death and chronic health conditions among participants of the Women's Health Initiative study, which has followed more than 100,000 women ages 50 and over since 1994. Women who were optimistic - those who expect good rather than bad things to happen - were 14 per cent less likely to die from any cause than pessimists and 30 per cent less likely to die from heart disease after eight years of followup in the study."
I have to confess that this article is no surprise to me whatsoever. I also enjoy the idea that science is making a habit recently of proving some of the ideas I live my life by. In summary:
- If I choose to expect good things in my life I am 14 per cent less likely to die than if I didn't make this choice
- If I choose to expect good things in my life I am 30 less likely to die from heart attack
This makes sense, and if anything I believe these numbers are low. But whatever the specific numbers may actually be there's no doubt in my mind that as a result of my choosing to expect good in my life I am better off. And didn't Ernest Holmes say that to "learn how to think is to learn how to live." It would seem that the time has come to evolve this idea and claim that, 'To learn how to choose has been proven to learn how to live.'
And if you needed some good news today then enjoy. Signs reminding you to 'expect the good' are always a good thing in my humble opinion.
Blessings, joy and peace my friends!
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