In May this year, one of the most impressive longevity studies ever undertaken made its way into book form and was published here in Australia.
First begun in the 1920s by Stanford University Psychologist Dr Lewis Terman, ‘The Terman Study’ performed in-depth research into the lives of almost 1,500 Americans born in roughly 1910.
Following Terman’s death, two more psychologists, Dr Howard Friedman and Dr Leslie R. Martin, picked up the trail of Terman’s work. They’ve spent the last 20 years analysing results and determining which habits led study participants to live the longest lives. The scientists’ findings were surprising.
As they write in their book The Longevity Project: “The long lived among them…were individuals with certain constellations of habits and patterns of living. Their personalities, career trajectories, and social lives proved highly relevant to their long-term health, often in ways we did not expect.”
In a nutshell: it’s not enough to focus on your body. Of equal importance is to focus on your families, work and social relations.
“It makes no sense to think of a human body merely as an engine that needs to be oiled and tuned or as a plant that needs to be watered and fed. At its essence, individual health depends on social health.”
References available on request