Things Are Looking Up: A Positive Aging Attitude Can Help Your Mind & Body

We’ve previously extolled the power of positive attitudes about aging to help you spend your later years in better health and perhaps even live longer. We’ve cited the seminal work of Professor Becca Levy of Yale University for her pioneering research in this field, and in her recent book, Breaking the Age Code: How Your Beliefs About Aging Determine How Long and Well You Live, Dr. Levy provides scientific and practical wisdom about how positive beliefs about aging can help you in all aspects of your life. And now Dr. Levy has just published a groundbreaking new study about the potential for both physical and cognitive improvement in your later years by adopting a positive attitude about aging.

According to this new research, the narrative that getting older is only a path toward inevitable decline is not borne out by the data collected in this study. With this research, Dr. Levy was able to document that a significant number of older adults can and do improve both cognitively and physically over time, provided they have a positive outlook on aging. In fact, nearly half of the adults in this study of over 11,000 seniors demonstrated that physical or cognitive improvements (or both) at later stages of life are not only possible but common. Cognitive improvement was measured by testing, and physical improvement was measured by increases in walking speed. The key to these improvements? Those who had positive beliefs about aging were likely to do significantly better on cognitive assessments and measures of walking speed over the 12 years of the study. Moreover, given that beliefs about aging can be altered or modified, this study points the way to interventions that can change the aging trajectory for scores of older adults. Whether participants had normal cognition and physical function at baseline or had physical health or cognitive challenges, both groups showed improvement over time. In essence, this study should help overturn any notions that aging only equates with decline. A positive belief about growing older can bring about a dramatic impact on the path your life actually takes as you get on in years.

Of course, altering societal beliefs about aging (which older adults can internalize) can be a challenge. A recent study found that about 80% of people surveyed think that cognitive decline is just a natural part of getting older. But as Dr. Levy has found, it may be that how one views the process of getting older is a strong predictor of improvement, rather than such factors as baseline health, age, education, or sex. There are many possible reasons for the impact of a positive attitude. For example, older adults with a positive attitude may handle stress better, thereby producing less cortisol, which can lead to inflammation and other health concerns. They may also have a better emotional balance and can better handle crises and challenges that can potentially cause neurologic problems. In contrast, those with negative attitudes toward aging may actually have an increase in their stress levels and lower motivation to take care of themselves. 

While this research is ongoing, it appears that once again, Dr. Levy has produced groundbreaking research about attitudes toward aging and how these beliefs can shape the aging experience of older adults. Other researchers have come up with similar or complementary findings to support this thesis. For example, it’s been found that one’s attitudes about aging can strongly predict the risk of heart disease and that those with positive beliefs are less likely to develop dementia. There have even been MRI studies showing less accumulation of amyloid brain plaques in those with positive attitudes. As one expert made clear, a positive belief can be a self-fulfilling prophecy toward better health in your later years: “Someone who sees the potential for growth in their golden years will take more steps to preserve their wellbeing, so that they can make the most of those opportunities.” So take that glass half full attitude and toast toward a positive outlook as you celebrate the birthdays to come!