By Salynn Boyles

WebMD Health News

Reviewed by Elizabeth Klodas, MD, FACC

March 13, 2008 -- Keeping a positive attitude is good for your health, and if you are a heart
patient it just may save your life, new research suggests.
A study of patients with heart disease followed for six to 10 years found that those with
pessimistic beliefs about their recovery were twice as likely to die during that timeframe as
those who felt more optimistic.
The research was presented this week in Baltimore at the annual meeting of the American
Psychosomatic Society, a group dedicated to the research of the interaction between the mind
and body.
"This study is one of the first to examine how a patient's attitude toward their disease affects
their health over the long term, and ultimately their survival," says lead researcher John C.
Barefoot, PhD.

Mind and Body Connection

Barefoot, Redford B. Williams, MD, and colleagues from Duke University Medical Center
conducted psychological assessments on 2,825 patients hospitalized for heart disease.
The patients were asked to describe their expectations about their ability to recover from their
illness and regain a normal life.
During six to 10 years of follow-up, 978 of the patients died, with 66% dying of heart
disease.
Patient expectations about their disease course were highly related to survival, with patients
who had the most pessimistic views dying at twice the rate of those who were most
optimistic.
After controlling for factors that could influence survival, including disease severity,
functional status, and depression, the death rate among the most pessimistic patients was still
30% higher than the most optimistic, Williams tells WebMD.
"Negative outlook was an independent predictor of poor outcomes," he says. "And there
seems to be something protective about having a more optimistic attitude that makes you feel
that you are going to be OK."
He says patients with positive expectations may be more likely to make lifestyle changes and
follow treatment regimens prescribed by their doctors.

The Impact of Stress

Another possible explanation is that positive thoughts may lessen the damaging effects of
stress on the body.
A separate study presented by the Duke researchers at the Baltimore meeting examined this
theory.
Researchers conducted personality profiles on 327 healthy people to determine if they were
more inclined to exhibit positive or negative emotions. They then conducted tests designed to
assess the study participants' physiological responses to stress.
People identified as being more positive were found to have significantly lower increases in
blood pressure during stress than people who were negative.
They also had lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol within 30 minutes of waking -- a
time in which levels tend to be high.
"It's not just that negative emotions are harmful," lead researcher Beverly H. Brummett, PhD,
tells WebMD. "There seems to be something about the experience of having more positive
emotions. They seem to act as a buffer against bad health outcomes."