Better Days Ahead

Moving past yesterday’s chaotic scene on the steps of our nation’s capitol…Viktor Frankl, Austrian psychiatrist, and Holocaust survivor, hypothesized that higher purpose gives people a will to stay alive. Americans dream of living long. In a survey by Stanford Center on Longevity, 77 percent said they’d like to make it to 100. Research reveals that people who believe their existence has meaning have lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol and more favorable gene expression related to inflammation.
 
For example, if a 90-year-old with a clear purpose in life develops Alzheimer’s disease, that person will probably keep functioning relatively well despite real pathological changes in the brain, one study found. Another meta-analysis of 10 studies involving more than 136,000 people found that having purpose in life can lower your mortality risk by about 17 percent--about as much as following the famed Mediterranean diet.
 
Separately, in case you were wondering…Which Members of Congress Objected to Certifying Biden’s Victory? - The New York Times (nytimes.com)
 
Learn More: 
Boosting our sense of meaning in life is an often overlooked longevity ingredient - The Washington Post
​Positive/Successful Aging - confronting aging, a world in transition