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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
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