Are you really ‘only as old as you feel’?

A few decades ago, someone’s age used to carry a far more significant meaning; people had less access to health information and technology, and therefore lifespans were shorter and the ravages of age more obvious. Now, however, someone who is in their 50’s may be as active and healthy as a 30-year-old, and experts indicate this ‘mental youth’ may actually have real impact on the human body.

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According to new research , published in JAMA Internal Medicine, feeling younger has been linked to a longer lifespan. Individuals who stated they felt younger than their actual age had, on average, a 3-year life span gain on people who indicated they felt their age or more than 1 year older.

“Self-perceived age reflects appraisals of health, physical limitations, and well-being in later life,” wrote the authors of the study. “Older people typically feel younger than their chronological age, and it is thought that those who feel younger than their actual age have reduced mortality.”

Participants in the research who felt younger than their actual age experienced a 14.3 percent mortality rate during the research time frame, just under 10 years. Individuals who felt their actual age of slightly older, had a mortality rate of 18 percent. Those with the highest mortality rate were people who felt much older than their actual age.

This is not the first study to demonstrate the power of the mind when it comes to aging. In 2012,research from the Yale School of Public Health found older people with positive views on aging were 44 percent more likely to recover fully after severe disability than those with negative views on aging.

“It’s not just about reducing the losses associated with aging, but also about making gains in one’s health or disability status and regaining what might have been lost,” Tara L. Stewart, PhD, assistant professor of psychology at Idaho State University, told WebMD at the time. “These people with positive stereotypes about aging experienced health gains and better recovery, not just a reduction of health losses.”

The latest study showed the strongest correlation was between perception of age and cardiovascular health; individuals who felt younger had significantly better cardiovascular rates compared to individuals who felt their age or older. Statistically, there was no significant relationship between perception of age and cancer mortality.

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But as much as feeling younger has to do with the power of positive thinking, experts explain people who feel younger most likely do so because their bodies are physically younger due to regular exercise, healthy diet and other anti-aging habits. In other words, they feel younger, because they are, in fact, healthier than many people their own age. This perception can also change as a person’s habits and health fluctuates.

“Self-perceived age has the potential to change, so interventions may be possible,” conclude the authors, as reported by MNT. “Individuals who feel older than their actual age could be targeted with health messages promoting positive health behaviors and attitudes toward aging.”

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