Relationships can help maintain mood – 01/20/2023 – Equilibrium

The value of relationships in achieving happiness may even seem like a movie cliché, but an American study conducted for almost a century confirmed that close people, in fact, influence how happy we are.

After following a group of 724 men (and their more than 1,300 descendants of both genders) for 85 years, researchers from Harvard University concluded that the strongest bonds around us are the factor with the greatest impact throughout life. They influence the quality of health and well-being and are even determinant for longevity.

Called the Study of Adult Development, the analysis is still ongoing, but its results have already yielded lectures and even a book with data from the first eight decades. “The Good Life: Lessons from the World’s Longest Scientific Study of Happiness” (the good life: lessons from the longest scientific study of happiness in the world), by Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz, does not yet have a Portuguese version and was out of print, but was reissued and reprinted this month by Ebury Digital.

The English edition is available in national bookstores and costs from BRL 50.97 (e-book) and BRL 235 (print). The work discusses topics presented by the authors in the TED Talk The Good Life, one of the ten most watched on the platform in the world.

Waldinger, professor of psychiatry at the Harvard Medical School and director of the group, and Schulz, associate director of the study, seek with the research to answer which moments in life are really worth it. And after surveying three generations of families, they are adamant: It’s not career, exercise or money, but nurturing warm relationships that make the difference.

The two found that personal connections acted powerfully and consistently on participants’ physical and mental health and longevity. A full and meaningful life, therefore, depends on quality relationships.

Those who have stronger bonds, for example, regardless of age or ethnicity, have a lower risk of dying, according to the results presented.

Waldinger compares these relationships to painkillers, since they can make us endure more pain and painful situations than we would be able to alone.

Elderly aged 80 who were part of the research and with happy relationships showed less mood swings even when they were on days with a higher incidence of pain.

The authors also recorded that when holding hands with a friend or loved one, people who were shocked in tests felt less neuralgia. The control group, which held hands with strangers, reported no such effect.

Caring about people, however, can also have its downsides.

The stress of caring for a relative with Alzheimer’s, for example, can affect the immune system, reducing its ability to heal. Women aged 60 who cared for patients with cognitive impairment, when injured, showed a healing process that was up to nine days slower.

“If you had to make a life choice, right now, to put yourself on the path to future health and happiness, what would it be?”, ask the authors in the very first chapter.

According to them, 76% of millennials participating in the survey responded that their main goal in life was to be rich and 50% to be famous. More than a decade later, this same group put fame at the bottom of the list and prioritized points such as making money, having a successful career and paying off debt.

The authors state that the definition of happiness is often linked to social demands and consumption stimuli coming from advertising and social networks. “Success in life is often measured by title, salary, and recognition of achievement, although most of us understand that these things don’t necessarily make for a happy life on their own. […] we’re always comparing our insides with other people’s outsides,” say the authors.

Luiz Roberto Ramos, physician and professor at Unifesp’s Preventive Medicine Department, says that studies like the one conducted by Harvard demonstrate the impact and influence of psychology on health.

“This social capital —family, friends, social interaction, the ability to move around and meet new people— is super important for the resilience you’ll have to stay active and functional. This all strengthens your health and your ability to remain autonomous, independent , which is the current concept of health. These results only confirm that”, says Ramos, who is the coordinator of Unifesp’s Center for the Study of Aging.

Cristoforo Scavone, a neuropharmacologist at the Institute of Biological Sciences at the University of São Paulo (USP), recalls that hormones and neurotransmitters associated with happiness and well-being (such as serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin and endorphins) are signaled to the body not only from exercise and good nutrition, but also for the environment.

“Good relationships with partners or even friends, for singles, are fundamental, as they act as a type of environmental enrichment. These practices directly influence the signals and, with that, can help to have a healthier life”, says Scavone .