Researcher: Giving Can Save Your Life

Dec. 19 -- No wonder Santa Claus just seems to go on forever. According to new research out of the University of Michigan, giving can actually help you live longer.

The research, based on 423 older couples who were studied for five years, lends new credence to that old cliché, "Tis better to give than to receive."

"Our results strongly suggest that giving makes a difference in terms of health," says psychologist Stephanie Brown of the university's Institute for Social Research.

The study found that older people who lend a hand to friends, neighbors or relatives, even if it amounts to little more than helping out around the house, reduce their risk of dying by nearly 60 percent compared to those who never offer any help to anyone else.

But Brown admits she doesn't have a tidy answer for why giving of yourself might extend your life span.

Giving and Feeling Good

"One possibility is that helping others produces positive emotions, which in turn protects us against the negative effects of cardiovascular stress," she says. That dovetails with other research at the University of Michigan showing that positive emotions can actually speed the recovery from cardiovascular illnesses.

Another possibility is that giving just makes us feel good. Robert Cialdini, a psychologist at Arizona State University, calls it "helper's high."

It may also be that the simple act of giving strengthens our relationships with others, which many regard as one key to healthy living.

Whatever the cause, Brown says the message is pretty clear. Giving has what Cialdini calls an "egoistic benefit."

To carry out her project, Brown relied on data collected as part of a broader study at her university of how older people cope with the inevitable changes brought on by the aging process.

Some 423 couples (all the men were at least 65 years old) were interviewed first in 1987, and then followed for five years. During that period 134 of the participants died.

In the first interview the couples were asked a wide range of questions dealing with such things as personal health, physical fitness, and their relationship with others. They were also asked a rather pointed question about whether they gave of themselves to others at least once during the preceding year. Did they run an errand for someone, or mow the lawn for a sick neighbor?