Good news for people who love to focus on good news: a new study has found that optimism can be just as important as exercise when it comes to helping you live past 90.
The study researchers followed a group of 159,255 women and found that those who were optimistic were more likely to live longer and into their 90s than those who were more pessimistic. According to their calculations, optimism is linked to a 5.4% increase in average life expectancy. In other words, maintaining a positive outlook can add an average of 4.4 additional years to your life.
“Remarkably, exercise has been widely recognized as an important factor for health, and studies have shown that regular exercise adds between 0.4 and 4.2 years to life,” the study, published in the journal Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, read. “Thus, our findings suggest that the impact of optimism may be comparable to that of exercise.”
The team found this to be true even when other factors such as depression, chronic health conditions, and racial, social, and economic background were taken into account. And the more optimistic you are, the better: According to the study’s findings, women in the most optimistic group were 10% more likely to live past 90 than those determined to be the least optimistic.
So if you’re looking to live well into your 90s, remember: the glass is always half full.
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