A Positive Attitude Can Keep You Healthy

"The Power of Positive Thinking" was published by Norman Vincent Peale way back in 1886. It was probably the first self-help book ever published. The book showed you how to have a good self-image, make friends, and be a success in life by thinking positively. Today the self-help market is one of the fastest growing in the publishing business, selling millions of books a year.

A book called "The Secret" has sold millions of copies as well. It's not supposed to be about positive thinking but rather how to get the universe to provide for our every need. Sure sounds like positive thinking to me.

Science has shown that there definitely is a mind/body connection. But most of the benefits seem to be in the area of disease prevention rather than helping the disease that you already have.

The jury is still out, but one study showed that the patients who were prayed for actually did worse than those who weren't prayed for. All the hope in the world won't cure your cancer, but a positive attitude just may help to keep you from getting it in the first place.

We know that negative emotions can cause stress and stress can make you sick. But is the opposite true, especially when we get older? According to Medical News Today:

"A new article published in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, reviews the existing research on how positive emotions can influence health outcomes in later adulthood."

Older people who are happier and have a positive attitude may take better care of themselves by avoiding negative habits such as not getting a good night's sleep or smoking. They may eat better and exercise regularly.

As mentioned before, stress can cause disease. It has been shown that stress produces chemicals that cause inflammation in the body, and inflammation is being shown to play a much greater role in immune system diseases, obesity, and heart disease.

It sounds trite, but the Buddhists say that you should find a quiet, happy place in your own mind; a place that you can go to in troubled times where none of the problems can reach you. And some Buddhists live happy, productive lives and are active well into their nineties.

So, by having a positive attitude throughout your life, especially when you get older, will not only help you live longer, but also have a greater quality of life as well.

Source: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/214442.php