Living Life on Purpose Increases Longevity

“If you try to do only for yourself, you’ll only get so far in life. If you reach out to touch other people, you can fix you own soul.”-Bryan A. Wood, Combat Veteran

Do you find yourself stuck in a daily routine that makes life feel like it’s just another day? When I first retired, I felt excited about the extra free time. After a few months of retirement, I heard others saying what I was also feeling. “Gee golfing every day left me feeling like there has to be more to life. Retirement isn’t what I thought it would be.” All my free time started to feel like it was just another day, with no surprises, plans, and meaning. Uncomfortability is a sign for me to pay attention, a time for opportunity and possibilities. As I suffered from this feeling of just another day, I returned to what I knew best, mindfulness awareness without judgment. Soon I realized retirement took away my purpose. There is research pointing to the importance of living life on purpose. It turns out sharing our passion, talents, and love is good for our happiness, health, and longevity. I share some of the studies below.

2003 Harvard, Mayo Clinic, and University of Pittsburg study on the concept of “cognitive reserve.”

·         They studied fifty brains from people who had died. One group of subjects had dementia while they were alive, and a control group had no symptoms of memory loss.

·         At autopsy, they found that some individuals from the control group accumulated equivalent loads of plaques and tangles as those found in people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s but did not experience dementia symptoms while alive.

·         Researchers believe the brain abnormalities did not cause symptoms because these individuals had “cognitive reserve.” They define cognitive reserves as extra neurons and stronger connections formed because of their continued activity in projects they felt were meaningful, activities they believed made a positive difference for others, living life on purpose.

2009 Archives of General Psychiatry report on a Johns Hopkins study on the importance of civic engagement for elders.

·         They assigned a group of elders to participate in a tutoring program for children in elementary school in Baltimore. After MRI brain scans, they found the participants who reported finding meaning in helping children had better cognitive functioning, and their hippocampus had less atrophy than the control group.

·         After examining the brain tissue of two hundred and fifty people who died during a long-term study of more than 1400 older men and women, they found some fascinating autopsy results.

·         After retirement, individuals who were not involved in new activities showed a cognitive decline like Alzheimer’s patients but did not have the brain plaques and tangles typical in Alzheimer’s clients.

·         Some individuals who had brain plaques and tangle like Alzheimer’s did not have dementia symptoms. They had no memory loss. They were people who reported having purpose and meaning in life after retirement.

·         The results indicated better brain functioning for people who reported having more purpose in their lives. Moreover, the results held up when controlled for differences in exercise levels, education, and stress factor.

2012 Patricia Boyle, a neuropsychologist at Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center in Chicago, led a team studying the effects of having a sense of purpose on Alzheimer’s Disease. They followed 246 older persons from the Rush Memory and Aging Project for seven years. They used structured interviews and cognitive functioning testing for evaluation. Changes in amyloid and tangles were examined in relation to the sense of purpose. Participants who scored high on purpose were two times more likely to be free of Alzheimer’s symptoms than those who scored low. In addition, Dr. Boyle’s team showed that purposeful people are less likely to develop disabilities that cause early death.

There seems to be significant scientific evidence showing the power of having continued purpose as we age. The results of these studies have significant public health implications. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, more than five million Americans are currently living with Alzheimer’s. It is the sixth leading cause of death in the U.S.

Imagine if a drug could reduce dementia with the same numbers as the purpose studies were able to demonstrate. What if that drug had no adverse side effects and could produce the same results? It would be a best seller.

Unfortunately, the number of people diagnosed with dementia-related diseases is rising, creating a significant strain on the healthcare industry and Medicare. Dr. Richard Lipton of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine found lifestyle changes to be more effective than medication in reducing the risks of dementia. Richard Davidson from the University of Wisconsin says, “I think that one of the important insights from our work is that the mind can be transformed, that we all are born with a capability for change. And that the seeds of living a compassionate life are within each of us.  

Living your life on purpose after retirement is one of the best things you can do for your health and longevity. You replace just another day syndrome with an I can make a difference today.

Exercise: Every morning this week, set the intention to make a positive difference in somebody’s life, human, animal, or plant.