Feelings of Well-Being = Well-Being: Cuts Heart Risk By One-Third

What you feel is what you get. Sometimes. A Johns Hopkins news release reports that researchers at the school found that people with cheerful temperaments are much less likely to suffer a coronary event such as a heart attack or sudden cardiac death. The researchers analyzed information from 1,483 healthy siblings of people who had coronary events before the age of 60 and who were followed for five to 25 years. They also surveyed the study participants, and scored their well-being from 0 to 110, a measure that gauged cheerful mood, level of concern about health, whether they were relaxed as opposed to anxious, energy level and life satisfaction. Over the course of an average 12-year follow-up, the researchers found that participants’ positive well-being was associated with a one-third reduction in coronary events; among those deemed at the highest risk for a coronary event, there was nearly a 50 percent reduction. Yes, 50 percent. Read more from Johns Hopkins.