MINDSET AND HEALTHY LONGEVITY
Can Your Outlook on Life Impact Your Physical Well-being?
DR. SRINI PILLAY
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Mindsets or mental attitudes toward life affect more than how you feel. How you view your life has much more serious implications for your overall health and well-being. That’s because the “mind” is connected to the body, and many psychologically challenging mindsets can impact your physical health too.
Mindsets that can impact your body: For example, optimism not only promotes healthier lifestyles and a more positive and adaptive outlook on life, but evidence also suggests that it can significantly enhance immunity, particularly under stress. In one study, optimistic individuals showed reduced inflammatory responses (IL-6) and stronger antibody responses to a typhoid vaccine during stress. This indicates that a positive outlook mitigates stress-induced inflammation and boosts the immune system's effectiveness. Also, when older people are empowered by a sense of purpose (what I call an “empowered” mindset), they have less chronic inflammation in early old age, though this impact wanes after age 73. In fact, more optimistic people have less cardiovascular disease as well.
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The powerful protective effect of optimism cannot be understated, especially when it leads to experiencing more positive emotions, also referred to as positive affect. In one experiment, healthy adults were exposed to a cold or flu virus via nasal drops and monitored in quarantine. The findings showed that participants with higher levels of positive affect were more resistant to developing an upper respiratory illness and reported fewer symptoms than those with lower positive affect. Conversely, having a negative affect did not predict susceptibility to colds. Additionally, having positive affect was associated with a stronger antibody response to the hepatitis B vaccination, while negative affect did not correlate with antibody response.
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Confidence is another kind of mindset that can impact your mortality. One study demonstrated that when people have low self-esteem, which has a bidirectional relationship with reduced confidence, their risk of dying is doubled. The reasons for this are not as straightforward, though. Confidence on its own does not impact the risk of dying. It’s when a lack of confidence is associated with hopelessness, depression, cynical hostility, or sullenness that this really impacts how long people live. However, hopelessness is also a mindset closely connected to a fixed mindset—when people believe that their circumstances will never change. As opposed to this, people who have a growth mindset—the belief that with effort, they can change their circumstances—are likely to age more successfully (e.g., better physical and emotional functioning.)
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Why do mindsets impact your body? “Mindset” is all about perspective, and your perspective determines what you value and choose in life. It’s long been known that mindset impacts neurons involved in what you value and choose. In addition, mindsets (e.g., believing and feeling hopeful) can also impact brain systems involved in processing your thoughts and emotions. Brain activations do not live inside your skull only. Every organ in your body is connected to your brain, so it’s unsurprising that when mindset impacts your brain, your body also feels the effects.
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Where do you start to change your mindset? If you’re feeling down or low on life, the good news is that you can change this. Your brain will respond to mindset shifts if you simply initiate them with self-talk. For example, when you are self-critical, your brain’s reward center becomes more discombobulated, whereas self-respect restores the connections.
A great place to start is to write down your core personal values, such as trust, love, or ambition. This takes you out of your present circumstances and expands your sense of self. Especially when you are thinking about how to change your life to honor these values in the future, your brain will respond by activating the reward system and key regions that process who you are. It’s like jumpstarting or reactivating what your brain has forgotten.
Conclusion: Regular mindset shifts can protect your mental and physical health. Think of these as “hacks” that you can regularly implement to protect your overall well-being.
