Is Love good for you?
Well…yes, of course it is!
Studies have shown that love:
· May improve your immune system and help you be healthier.
· Can help keep you physically fit and live longer.
· Love can improve your mental health.
Love is all around us. We give and receive love from many sources.
Why is love so important, how can we find more of it AND how can we GIVE more of it?
Read on to learn the benefits of LOVE.
Love may improve your immune system and help you be healthier.
“Indeed, studies consistently show that married people live longer and enjoy better physical health than unmarried people. This relationship has been found for more than 100 years, for both men and women, in different countries, and for a wide range of measures of health and illnesses[i] “.
In a study by Ronald Glazer and Jan Kiecolt-Glaser, it was shown that couples that “fought” in a healthy productive, loving way (positive conflict resolution) had higher immune functions than those who fought in a more negative, attacking manner.
Want better heart health...Love your partner.
Dr. Harry Lodge, author of Younger Next Year, explains why. "People who are socially engaged have half the mortality of people who are lonely and isolated," he said. He said that the emotional connection between lovebirds lowers stress levels because of the emotional support and physical intimacy that comes from being in love.
"You have a much healthier, freer flow of blood to your brain," he explained. "And what that means is your brain can regulate the rest of your body far more effectively." "And the same thing happens: all of your blood vessels relax and so blood flows exactly where it's needed in your body," he continued. "It brings the right chemicals, the right nutrients," he said. "You can heal in all the different areas that otherwise are chewed up with stress."
From a CDC (Center for Disease Control) 2004 study:
Regardless of population subgroup (age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, education, income, or nativity) or health indictor (fair or poor health, limitations in activities, low back pain, headaches, serious psychological distress, smoking, or leisure-time physical inactivity), married adults were generally found to be healthier than adults in other marital status categories. Marital status differences in health were found in each of the three age groups studied (18–44 years, 45–64 years, and 65 years and over), but were most striking among adults aged 18–44 years.[1][ii]
Love can help keep you physically fit and live longer.
Thirty minutes of sex burns 85 calories or more. It may not sound like much, but it adds up: Forty-two half-hour sessions will burn 3,570 calories, more than enough to lose a pound. Doubling up, you could drop that pound in 21 hour-long sessions.[iii]
Perhaps the best way to maximize calorie-burning during sex is to make sure you orgasm. Experts estimate that women who orgasm during sex burn more calories during lovemaking than those who don’t.
We think this is a great way to stay fit! I'm sure it’s a workout routine everyone can make time for…
Aside from the physical aspect of love, just being with someone will make you more physically active. Walking, working together, family activities…
AND, married people, on average, live twice as long as unmarried people! Researchers analyzed data for 4,802 individuals who took part in the University of North Carolina Alumni Heart Study (UNCAHS). They found that having a partner during middle age is protective against premature death: those who never married were more than twice as likely to die early than those who had been in a stable marriage throughout their adult life.
Being single, or losing a partner without replacement, increased the risk of early death during middle age and reduced the likelihood that one would survive to be elderly. Even when personality and risky behaviors were taken into account, marital status continued to have a major impact on survival. [iv]
Think about that next time you have an argument the person you’re arguing with might also be the one helping you live twice as long!
Love can improve your mental health
When we’re in love we have less stress and we are happier.
Study after study…after study, has shown that when we are in love, we have an increased release of dopamine. What is dopamine? It is a neurotransmitter (some call it a “love drug”) and high levels of this neurotransmitter dopamine, is found in people that are in love. This chemical stimulates ‘desire and reward’ by triggering an intense rush of pleasure. A giddiness or euphoria is produced when our body releases this chemical. It has the same effect on the brain as taking cocaine!
Love is empowering. Love gives strength and hope. Love brings peace. Love can do all things. Love gives us a sense of value, purpose and it makes life worth enjoying. Love for others can make the impossible, possible.
Love helps make us feel complete, alive and compels us to go on. When we think, and care for those we love, it gets us outside of ourselves and allows us to focus on others. When we focus on others we will find joy in serving, peace in being connected and the feeling of being part of something that is much bigger than ourselves.
So…is love good for us?
Love is the strongest, healthiest most sought after item in the universe. It’s impossible to define, for many elusive to find, but when you have it, you know it…and it’s amazing.
[1] Marital Status and Health: United States, 1999–2002 by Charlotte A. Schoenborn, M.P.H., Division of Health Interview Statistic
[i] The Effects of Marriage on Health: A Synthesis of Recent Research Evidence By:Robert G. Wood, Brian Goesling, and Sarah Avellar Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. June 19, 2007 [ii] Marital Status and Health: United States, 1999–2002 by Charlotte A. Schoenborn, M.P.H., Division of Health Interview Statistic. [iii] http://www.webmd.com/sex-relationships/guide/10-surprising-health-benefits-of-sex [iv] Ilene C. Siegler, Beverly H. Brummett, Peter Martin, Michael J. Helms. Consistency and Timing of Marital Transitions and Survival During Midlife: the Role of Personality and Health Risk Behaviors. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 2013; DOI: 10.1007/s12160-012-9457-3