As people age they are generally searching more aggressively than ever for ways to extend their lives even more. A good natural way to live longer is to work on feeling younger. The JAMA Network Journals reported that feeling younger than their actual age has meant lower death rates for older people.
In spite of some cynical critics of elderly people who try to stay young in their ways of thinking and lifestyles it turns out that feeling younger than what your actual age is might really be good for you. Researchers have found that older people who felt three or more years younger than their actual chronological age had a lower death rate in comparison with those people who felt their age or who felt older than their actual age.
Clearly self-perceived age can serve as a reflection of assessments of health, physical limitation and well-being in later life. Many older people are fortunate to feel younger than their actual age. During an average follow-up of 99 months mortality rates were 14.3 percent in adults who felt younger, 18.5 percent in those adults who felt about their actual age and 24.6 percent in those adults who felt as if they were older than their actual age.
The researchers feel the mechanisms which underly these associations deserve further investigation. There are possibilities among those who feel younger than their age which explain their increased lifespan such as a broad range of health behaviors including maintaining a healthy weight and greater resilience, sense of mastery and a strong will to live among those people who maintain a youthful feeling.
In view of the fact that self-perceived age has the potential to change interventions may be possible for people who feel older than their actual age. Health messages should be encouraged which promote positive health behaviors and attitudes toward aging.
This study has been published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. Self-perceived age serves as a reflection of assessments of health, physical limitations, and well-being later in life. It is thought that older people who feel younger than their actual age have decreased mortality. It’s clearly a good idea to stay young in how you feel about your life no matter how old you are.
