Healthy Aging

Optimism can protect your long-term health

While we focused the past five issues on the cell-based drivers of aging, this week let’s talk about the power our minds have on our health, especially as we age.

In a recent review paper titled, ‘A systematic review and meta-analysis of subjective age and the association with cognition, subjective well-being, and depression,’ Debreczeni et al. summarize the latest science on how a perceived younger subjective age can help outwit our chronological age.

So, what is the difference between subjective vs. chronological age?

As described by Debreczeni et al., “subjective age” refers to the extent to which people feel younger or older than their chronological age. Simply put, chronological age is how many years old you are. Subjective age is how old you feel.

Next time someone asks your age, tell them your younger subjective one.

A recent review of 35 scientific articles showed that a younger subjective age (aka feeling younger than your chronological age) consistently and significantly improved a sense of well-being, enhanced cognitive performance, and lowered the risk of depression. This association was true for both men and women, across all ages between 53 and 83 years old.

Yeah, but aren’t healthy people just more likely to report feeling younger?

Yes, the science supports that it works both ways. Healthy people do feel younger. Studies also show, however, that a younger subjective age can actually make you healthier.

In a chapter titled, ‘Determinants and implications of subjective age across adulthood and old age’, Stephan et al. summarize numerous studies showing how having a younger subjective age can:

• Lower systemic inflammation
• Improve resilience to stress
• Support cognitive function
• Increase positive health behaviors (like increased exercise)
• Improve longevity

I’m in. How can I develop a younger subjective age?

Stephan et al. discuss the following predictors of a younger subjective age, which can serve as useful tips on how you can feel young to stay young:

• Be open to new experiences. People who maintain their willingness to experience the world around them are more likely to have a younger subjective age. This can be as simple as trying a new restaurant or a new activity, or as adventurous as traveling to a new country.
• DIY (when appropriate, do it yourself). The stronger sense of control people have over their own life, the younger they feel. That means it’s important to balance being pampered with being independent.
• Stay positive and lower that stress. People who hold positive self-views of their future and find effective ways to handle life’s stressors are also more likely to have a younger subjective age. That means spending more time getting excited for what is ahead and recalibrating your life to not sweat the small stuff.