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Being happy in your relationship can lead to better health when you grow older, says study�
Be mindful of your partner’s traits while picking one because a new study links certain characteristics to overall well-being in the long run.
While couples who reported higher levels of satisfaction in intimate relationships were better at facing adversities, no link was found between grouchy partners and stress.
Couples’ happiness linked to overall health
Happy couples enjoy several benefits, including longevity. A previous study found that couples who drink together live together longer.
Although 24 hours of an unhappy relationship is nothing short of a nightmare, being with a partner who shows positive emotions significantly reduces your stress.
The lead author of new research by the University of California, Davis, Tomiko Yoneda, says: Having positive emotions with your relationship partner can act like a social resource.”
The researchers found our body produces less stress hormone in moments when our partners display tighter positive emotions than usual – an observation made among the participants of the study.
Healthy relationships provide an “ideal source of support”, especially important in old age when the ability to deal with stress naturally reduces.
However, no link was established between stress and partner’s negative emotions, which Tomiko doesn’t find surprising as “prior research suggests that older adults may shield their partners from a physiological response to negative emotions in others,” notes the study.
How stress affects older adults
According to the National Council on Aging, stress affects older adults many ways – causing new health issues, worsening existing ones, and speeding up the aging process.
The UC Davis study notes that the link between emotions and cortisol (stress hormone) is “even stronger” in old age, and older adults tend to have stronger physiological responses to stress.
Fortunately, a fulfilling relationship rife with positive emotions can “buffer the production of cortisol”. However, those who are affected by stress not just because of a lack of satisfying relationships, are at greater risk of age-related conditions.
“In other words, more stress equals more inflammation, and more inflammation when were stressed equals more (or worse) health problems,” warns NCO.
