Nov 08, 2014 10:23 AM EST By J Baulkman, UniversityHerald Reporter

Having a sense of purpose in life could lead to a longer lifespan, according to a recent study.

Researchers from the University College London found that a type of wellbeing called "eudemonic wellbeing," which relates to a person's sense of control, feeling that what they do is worthwhile, and their sense of purpose in life could influence lifespan. They found that people with the greatest wellbeing were 30 percent less likely to die during the average eight and a half year follow-up period than those with the least wellbeing.

"We have previously found that happiness is associated with a lower risk of death," Andrew Steptoe, who led the study, said in a statement. "These analyses show that the meaningfulness and sense of purpose that older people have in their lives are also related to survival. We cannot be sure that higher wellbeing necessarily causes lower risk of death, since the relationship may not be causal. But the findings raise the intriguing possibility that increasing wellbeing could help to improve physical health."

For the study, researchers collected data from more than 9,000 English people with an average age of 65. They used questionnaire answers to measure eudemonic wellbeing and divided people into four categories based on their answers, ranked from highest wellbeing to lowest wellbeing

Over the next eight and a half years, 9 percent of people in the highest wellbeing category had died, compared with 29 percent in the lowest category. Once all the other factors had been taken into account, people with the highest wellbeing were 30 percent less likely to die over the study period, living on average two years longer than those in the lowest wellbeing group.

"There are several biological mechanisms that may link wellbeing to improved health, for example through hormonal changes or reduced blood pressure," Steptoe said in a statement. "Further research is now needed to see if such changes might contribute to the links between wellbeing and life expectancy in older people."

The findings are detailed in The Lancet.

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