Having an Optimistic Partner May Stave Off Dementia: Study

A study published in the Journal of Personality suggests an optimistic partner could help people live healthier lives and ward off dementia, reports Yahoo! News . The researchers considered nearly 4,457 retired heterosexual couples over 50 years old who had their optimism assessed at the start, and their cognition measured every two years. The investigators observed a modest but positive link between participants' own optimism and their cognitive functioning, as well as an association between their partner's optimism and their own cognition. Being part of a couple with an optimistic person seemed to help block the onset of cognitive decline. Optimistic people could help improve their partner's health by encouraging healthy behavior like exercise or quitting smoking, which may lower the risk factors leading to Alzheimer's disease, dementia, and cognitive decline as they age together. "Maintaining a healthy weight and physical activity are large predictors of cognitive performance," said Michigan State University Professor William Chopik. "There are some physiological markers as well. It looks like people who are married to optimists tend to score better on all of those metrics."