Feeling Younger Than Your Age May Cause You to Live Longer

Feeling younger than your actual age may just be good for you. Scientists have found that those who feel younger are liable to live longer.

In order to see whether perceived age has an effect on mortality, the researchers examined data from a study on aging. They included 6,489 individuals, whose average chronological age was 65.8 years, but whose average self-perceived age was 56.8 years.  About 69.8 percent of the adults felt three or more years younger than their actual age. Another 25.6 percent had a self-perceived age that was close to their actual age and 4.8 percent felt more than a year older than their chronological age.

So what did they find? The scientists looked at mortality rates during an average follow-up of 99 months.  This revealed that mortality was 14.3 percent in adults who felt younger, 18.5 percent in those who felt their actual age and 24.6 percent in those who felt older.

"The mechanisms underlying these associations merit further investigation," write the researchers in a news release. "Possibilities include a broader set of health behaviors than we measured (such as maintaining a healthy weight and adherence to medical advice), and greater resilience, sense of mastery and will to live among those who feel younger than their age."

The findings reveal that if you feel younger, you may just be able to live longer. That said, further study is needed before any firm conclusions are drawn, but it does show that you may not always want to feel your age.

The findings are published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

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