Forget What You ' ve Heard About Grumpy Old Men
After middle age , adults actually grow happier as they get older , despite the fact that their physical quality of life may decline . Here ' s the bright side of going over the hill .
WiregrassSeniorsMagazine . com Page 13
Turns out the number of candles on your last birthday cake may not influence your disposition the way you might think . Instead of turning adults into grumps , growing older actually makes many of them happier .
Researchers from the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom found that disposition improves after middle age , despite declining physical ability . Being overweight or obese doesn ’ t appear to make people any less happy , either , they found .
The new study , which looked at the lifestyle and health patterns of more than 10,000 people in the United States and the United Kingdom , builds on previous research suggesting that happiness levels over one ’ s lifetime generally form a U-curve . They reach a low at 45 and then rise gradually with age .
Lead study author Saverio Stranges , MD , PhD , of the Warwick Medical School at the University of Warwick , suggested in a University of Warwick press release that the heightened happiness may have something to do with better coping abilities among seniors . Previous research showing that older people are better at dealing life ’ s crises than those who are younger supports his team ’ s hypothesis .
Then again , older people might just be better at letting things go .
“ It could also be due to a lowering of expectations from life , with older people less likely to put pressure on themselves in the personal and professional spheres ,” Dr . Stranges said in the press release .
It sounds like seniors may be more “ chill ” than twenty-somethings .
Finally , the researchers found that those who slept between six and eight hours per day tended to score better , both physically and mentally , than those who caught less or more ZZZs .
Those of us who haven ’ t yet reached our happiness peaks should take a lesson from our older , wiser , and scientifically proven happier elders : Give yourself a break and get to bed early tonight .
By Jaimie Clayton