Optimistic Outlook May Benefit the Lungs
20 May 2002
ATLANTA-An optimistic outlook may improve lung function, suggests a study to
be presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference in
Atlanta on May 20. The study of 670 older men found that those with a more
optimistic outlook had significantly higher levels of lung function and a
slower rate of decline in lung function than more pessimistic men.
"Previous studies have shown a link between optimism and enhanced
well-being, while pessimism has been shown to be a risk factor for poor
physical health," said lead researcher Rosalind J. Wright, M.D.,
M.P.H., Instructor in Medicine at Brigham & Women's Hospital and Harvard
Medical School in Boston. "This is the first study to show such a link
specifically between optimism and improved lung function over time."
Dr. Wright said that a person's outlook may somehow influence the body's
immune system processes that play a role in the airway inflammation
associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
"The study suggests there may be reversible factors that may have an
impact on patients' long-term rate of lung function decline, which has been
shown to be related to a person's risk of mortality," Dr. Wright said.
"Preliminary studies on heart patients have suggested that through
behavior modification to change a person's outlook, you can improve a
person's mortality risk. Further research may show whether improving a
person's outlook can lengthen life and improve the quality of life in
patients with lung disease."
The study followed 670 men, the majority of whom were white, and whose
average age was 63 years at the beginning of the study. They were followed
for an average of eight years, and had an average of three lung exams during
that time. Men who were shown to be more optimistic according to a
questionnaire derived from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
had significantly higher lung function, and a slower rate of decline in lung
function compared with more pessimistic men.
"It has been suggested that pessimistic people may be more likely to
smoke to control stress and negative emotions, but we found that optimism
was linked to improved lung function even after we took smoking into
account," she said.
Dr. Wright and colleagues are now using study data from a more diverse
population to see whether optimism and pessimism have the same effect on
lung function in women, in younger people, and in people of different races.
"There are differences in the way that men and women tend to
internalize stress and experience emotions, so it will be interesting to see
whether their outlook affects their lung function differently," she
said.
Source: American Thoracic Society
