A major 2019 analysis of 15 studies (229,391 participants) found that people ranking high in optimism were much less likely to have a heart attack or other cardiovascular event and had a lower mortality rate from any cause than did pessimistic participants. Across all data, there was a strong relationship between optimism and a lower risk of disease, with optimists having a 35 percent lower risk of cardiovascular events—and a 14 percent lower risk of premature deaths—than pessimists.
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Read a recent New York Times overview of the new spate of long-term studies that show the many ways looking on the bright side is preventative medicine.
