Feeling old can make us sick, research suggests

A recent study in the United States found that people who feel old are more likely to suffer from various mental and physical illnesses, including depression, dementia, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

The study, conducted at Oregon State University on 105 people aged 52 to 88, used data collected in 2010 on the mental and physical health of middle-aged and older adults in a survey called 'PULSE'.

An analysis of this information found that people who perceive themselves as obsolete and inefficient as they age are more likely to suffer from various physical and mental illnesses caused by aging.

Among them were those who were feeling older on their own, while on the other hand some were constantly being made to feel older by others around them.

The research found that in both cases, the negative feeling of aging was making such people sick.

In contrast, those who set aging goals with a sense of well-being had significantly fewer physical and mental illnesses, while they were significantly fatter as they age.

The responses of the participants in the said survey also revealed that if a person is made to feel old in a negative way even for a short time, he suffers from nervous tension which takes a long time to dissipate.

"A pleasant feeling of aging is better for your health, regardless of how much (neural) stress you have or how much stress you're feeling," said Dakota Witzel, lead author of the study and O. is a Ph.D. Scholar in the SU College of Public Health and Human Sciences.

The research is published online in the latest issue of the Journal of Gerontology, Series B, Psychological Sciences.

However, Witzel cautioned against jumping to conclusions based on the research, as the survey on which it was based was small in number and overwhelmingly white women.

"If we want to better understand the relationship between the feeling of aging and mental and physical health, we need larger surveys that include equal numbers of women and men, as well as people from different ethnicities." Yes,'' Witzel clarified.

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