Dr David Hamilton Home Page

Happiness is Good for the Heart
(www.drdavidhamilton.com)

A brand new piece of research found that happiness is really good for the heart. Following a group of 1,739 adults from Nova Scotia in Canada for 10 years, scientists from Columbia University found that those who were happiest were 22% less likely to get heart disease than those who were, well, just normal – who sat about half way on the scale between experiencing mostly positive or mostly negative emotions.

Lead researcher, Professor Karina W. Davidson, PhD, and her team assessed how much the 1,739 people experienced negative emotions and states, like anger, hostility, and even depression, and positive emotions and states, like happiness, excitement, and joy.

They found that happiness was clearly associated with a healthier heart.

Several studies have shown that people who tend to be hostile and aggressive towards others, not just periodically, but when it is their way, have a higher risk of heart disease than those whose disposition is more, say, gentle, kind, and compassionate. But this was the first study to show that positive emotions and states, like happiness, actually protect us from heart disease.

And, of course, even if we tend to be happy a lot and experience more positive emotions than negative ones, we all have those days when everything seems to go against us and we cannot motivate ourselves to be positive, no matter what. But the study showed that even in those times, the overall leaning towards positive emotions still protect us from heart disease.

Occasional days when we feel blue have little or no negative effects if we’re generally happy.
So how do we work on our happiness?

Well, there’s a growing body of research that shows that ‘softer’ attitudes can help us build happiness inside ourselves.

For instance, keeping a gratitude journal has been shown to generate happiness. In fact, in one gratitude study lasting 10 weeks, people counting their blessings were found to be 25% happier than those who were asked to keep a diary of their annoyances, frustrations, and problems.

To keep a simple gratitude journal, just write down 5-10 things that you’re grateful for that have happened in the past 24 hours, and do it every day.

I also suggest that people try a 21-day kindness challenge. This is where we do an act of kindness every day for 21 days. Of course we don’t do kindness to make ourselves feel good. We do kindness because it’s the right thing to do. But happiness is a side effect. This is because we are genetically wired to be kind. It’s who, in fact, it’s what we are. Kindness tilts the body’s physiology towards good health and our emotions towards happiness because our nervous system has evolved this way.

The good thing about doing kindness is that is makes a positive difference in the lives of others. This should always be our primary motivation.

Many studies now show that regular acts of kindness make us happier. You don’t need to do huge things that change people’s lives. Small things matter too, like holding a door open for someone, smiling, saying thank you, or even lending a CD.

What can you do for someone today?

Ref: Davidson, K.W. European Heart Journal, published online Feb.18, 2010.