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Optimism May Protect Against Heart Disease
Posted by: Dr. Mercola
December 22 2001 | 1,306 views

People who blame themselves for bad events and believe that things will never change are more likely to develop heart disease than their more optimistic peers.

People with a pessimistic explanatory style were more likely to develop heart disease and die of a heart attack than those who shrugged off bad news with a view that things were bound to improve. A person's explanatory style refers to the way they understand the causes of life's events.

The findings support the results of previous research linking pessimism with higher levels of anger, anxiety and depression -- emotions that may be risk factors for heart disease.

Because optimistic individuals actively engage in planning and problem solving, they may experience fewer stressors, or they may have more resources with which to deal with stress.

They note that optimists tend to be more social, a quality that has been linked with better health. These individuals may also be more likely to adopt healthy behaviors such as exercising, drinking in moderation and not smoking.

There were few differences in lifestyle behaviors between optimists and pessimists, although pessimists were more likely to consume more than two drinks of alcohol a day and to have a lower level of education.

Psychosomatic Medicine 2001;63:910-916



Dr. Mercola's Comments:
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Your persistent thoughts become your reality.

This is an amazing truth of life. Refusing to focus on the negative and seeking to concentrate on the positives will greatly improve your quality of life and likely prevent major disease in the future.

EFT works particularly well for helping one do this. If you "tap in" the positive options you are seeking in your energy meridian systems it will have an amazing effect in facilitating that desire to occur in your life.



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