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I know that a lot of the
advice about how to live a healthier life isn’t always convenient or fun.
After all, between work and family, it can feel like there just aren’t
enough hours in the day.
That’s why one of my
favorite ways to tell people to help their health is simply to spend time
with friends.
I’ve talked about how going for a walk with a
friend can even be more beneficial than doing a crossword
puzzle for our brain health, but now, a study also links social
connections to better physical health.
Researchers followed more than 4,000
people and found that more positive experiences in social
relationships were associated with better coping, lower stress and lower
systolic blood pressure, or spikes in blood pressure under stress.
But there was a flip side
to the study. If people had negative experiences with social connections,
those seemed to have a bigger impact on them than the positive.
The researchers also noted
that the study cannot prove that better relationships cause better
health, but it shows a connection, and they hope more studies can expand
on these findings.
“It would be useful to
examine other physiological states, such as neuroendocrine or sympathetic
nervous system responses as outcomes of daily positive and negative
relationship experiences, which may reveal different patterns of
associations,” said lead study author Brian Don of the University of
Auckland.
For those who are still
getting back into the swing of things after living through a pandemic the
past three years, it’s OK to start small when working on these social connections.
Adam Smiley Poswolsky, an
expert in workplace belonging, has this great piece of advice: “If you do
just one thing, make a list of five people in your life that you care
about, and give one of them a phone call. The most remarkable friendships
often begin with tiniest moments of connection.”
That seems like an easy way
to start living a healthier life.
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