Optimism Good for Heart and Longevity

Aug. 11 -- MONDAY, Aug. 10 (HealthDay News) -- Women who take a darker view of life are more likely to develop heart trouble than those with a cheerful, trusting outlook, a new study indicates.

The finding comes from the Women's Health Initiative, which has tracked more than 97,000 postmenopausal American women for more than eight years.

"In addition to looking at hormones and their effect on heart disease and cancer, the study also examined psychosocial and social factors and how they affected the health of postmenopausal women," said Dr. Hilary A. Tindle, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, and lead author of a report in the Aug. 10 issue of Circulation. "Fortunately, we have this wealth of information on the psychological profile at the time they joined the study."

Optimism was measured by a questionnaire on whether a woman agreed with such statements as "In unclear times, I usually expect the best." The questions measuring cynicism asked about agreement with such statements as "It is safer to trust no one" and "I have often had to take orders from people who did not know as much as I did."

Women within the highest 25 percent of optimism scores had a 9 percent lower chance of developing heart disease and a 14 percent lower chance of dying of any cause. Women with the highest degree of cynical hostility were 16 percent more likely to die than those with the most trust in their fellow humans.

The results most likely apply to men as well as women, Tindle said, citing several previous studies, such as a 2004 Dutch report that men who were more optimistic died less often of cardiovascular disease.

There are several possible explanations for the new finding, Tindle said. Money might well be involved, since "optimism is associated with higher income and education," she said. But curiously, "the level of socioeconomic status when a woman was young was better associated with outcome than current status," Tindle said.