2384: The One Thing That Makes For a Happier, Longer Life by Dr. Jenny Brockis on Quality of Relationships

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[00:00:57] Hello everybody and welcome back to another bonus episode, as we produce each Sunday here on ORD.

[00:01:03] I'm your host Greg Audino, and in this week's bonus episode, I'll be sharing audio from a previously aired episode of our health show, Optimal Health Daily,

[00:01:12] which I highly recommend checking out if you are looking for great articles and advice brought to you by Dr. Neil Malek, our host over there who does a really terrific job.

[00:01:19] Let's hear what he has for us this time, as we optimize your life.

[00:01:27] The One Thing That Makes for a Happier, Longer Life by Dr. Jenny Brockes of drjennybrockes.com

[00:01:35] In 1938, a group of researchers began a longitudinal study to answer the question,

[00:01:41] what makes a good life?

[00:01:43] Was it being born with a silver spoon in your mouth?

[00:01:46] Having a good education and finding a well-paid job?

[00:01:49] Was it enjoying high social status and all the freedoms wealth can bestow?

[00:01:54] Or was it something else?

[00:01:57] They discovered the answer.

[00:01:58] The study is still ongoing, with a number of the original cohort still participating in the biannual survey,

[00:02:05] and now joined by their offspring and their partners.

[00:02:08] In my book, Thriving Mind, I explore the concept of happiness, what it is, why we think we have to pursue it,

[00:02:15] and what enables us to be happier.

[00:02:17] The answer is discussed by Robert Waldinger, the current and fourth director of the Harvard Adult Development Study,

[00:02:24] in his TED talk, where he explains, it's the quality of our closest relationships that have the biggest impact on our health and happiness.

[00:02:33] He said, quote,

[00:02:34] How happy we are in our relationships has a powerful influence on our health.

[00:02:39] The best predictor at age 50 of your physical health at age 80 isn't your cholesterol level,

[00:02:45] but how satisfied you are in your relationships with your family, friends, and community.

[00:02:50] End quote.

[00:02:52] Being happy is one thing, but what about how long you're going to live?

[00:02:56] Is there one thing that might determine how likely it will be for you to live well into your hundreds,

[00:03:02] happy and well, and with your brain intact?

[00:03:05] Again, research suggests there is.

[00:03:08] You may have heard of the Blue Zones.

[00:03:10] These are the five diverse areas around the world where many of the inhabitants are centenarians.

[00:03:15] There is the island of Okinawa in Japan, Ikaria in Greece, Loma Linda in the US,

[00:03:21] the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica, and Oligostra in Sardinia.

[00:03:25] These five zones have been found to share certain common characteristics.

[00:03:30] The inhabitants eat a diet based on fresh, locally sourced produce that's predominantly plant-based.

[00:03:35] They exercise a lot, not by going to the gym necessarily, but by remaining active and walking every day.

[00:03:41] They drink moderate amounts of alcohol.

[00:03:44] They get plenty of good quality sleep.

[00:03:46] Faith is important to many.

[00:03:48] And they have a strong social network of extended family members and community,

[00:03:54] meaning they are cared for by those who know them, love them, and value them.

[00:03:59] Susan Pinker, organizational psychologist and author of The Village Effect,

[00:04:03] How Face-to-Face Contact Can Make Us Healthier and Happier,

[00:04:06] in her TED Talk, explains how her curiosity to understand why, as a whole,

[00:04:12] those born genetically female live six to eight years longer than those born genetically male,

[00:04:16] took her to Sardinia, one of the Blue Zones.

[00:04:20] Sardinia is only about 350 kilometers from the mainland of Italy,

[00:04:24] and yet the island has six times as many centenarians as Italy,

[00:04:28] and is the only place in the world where those born genetically male live as long as those born genetically female.

[00:04:35] Why?

[00:04:36] Beyond all other lifestyle factors you might expect and having close personal relationships,

[00:04:43] there is another social factor at play.

[00:04:45] The top place goes to your level of social integration.

[00:04:50] Your social what?

[00:04:52] Your social integration.

[00:04:54] It's about how much you interact with others around you.

[00:04:57] Like, talking to the person operating the checkout stand at the supermarket.

[00:05:02] I knew there was a reason I disliked those self-checkout stalls so much.

[00:05:06] Or, asking how the barista who makes your coffee every day in your favorite cafe is doing.

[00:05:11] Or, sharing a cheery good morning to a fellow dog walker you pass on the street.

[00:05:16] Or, saying thank you to the driver who stops to let you cross the road.

[00:05:19] Or, introducing yourself to the person who just sat down next to you on the plane, train, or coach, assuming no restrictions of course.

[00:05:27] Who's going to be your companion for the next five hours on your shared journey.

[00:05:31] Of course, this does depend on your personality and culture.

[00:05:34] When I suggested to one of my brothers how chatting to strangers or people we bump into regularly during the course of our day could make us feel good about ourselves, he was horrified.

[00:05:44] Why on earth would I do that? He asked.

[00:05:47] People would think I was peculiar.

[00:05:49] Yes, he's British and well, born British myself, having now lived in Australia for many years, I will pretty much happily chat with anyone.

[00:05:57] Or, at the very least, smile in acknowledgement of their presence.

[00:06:01] When I lived in the UK, I was a regular commuter on the London Underground.

[00:06:05] Where the unspoken rule was to sit in stony silence for the entire journey.

[00:06:10] No one made eye contact or spoke to anyone else.

[00:06:13] Preferring to sit by their eyes closed, earphones in place listening to music, or reading their newspaper and folding the pages over to prevent annoying neighbors from trying to read it too.

[00:06:25] Why this is important.

[00:06:27] It's not just about living longer.

[00:06:29] Loneliness has been described as a public health hazard and is a growing problem.

[00:06:34] Our wonderful technology allows us to connect with others in an instant, and yet can leave us with a growing sense of disconnect.

[00:06:42] Have you ever found yourself so engrossed in your social media feed on your work commute, you become oblivious to the people and what's happening around you?

[00:06:50] A few years ago, I was on a bus in northern Japan en route to the airport.

[00:06:54] We traveled through areas of forest, passing by rivers and countryside dotted with villages.

[00:06:59] It was an exquisite landscape that the two young siblings sitting in the row on the other side of the bus from me failed to notice at all,

[00:07:07] because they were totally focused on their online games on their phones for the entire journey.

[00:07:12] Failing to connect with others regularly, face to face, can damage our health, our mental well-being, our cognition, and may shorten our lives.

[00:07:21] We are social beings, and feeling isolated, whether through circumstance, working from home, or living in prolonged periods of lockdown, is doing us harm.

[00:07:31] While Zoom calls and team meetings can help, unless you've applied a cat filter, they're not quite as good as being in the room together.

[00:07:40] While debate rages on whether we will ever return to the previous way of working in an office or not post-COVID,

[00:07:47] the real urgency lies in ensuring we continue to enjoy a sense of connection and have opportunities for social integration.

[00:07:55] Whether you are sharing a smile, a joke, or a story, this is what elevates levels of those feel-good neurochemicals essential to your mental well-being.

[00:08:04] We get an extra surge of dopamine that makes us feel great, and oxytocin that helps us feel connected to the person we are with, building trust and mutual respect.

[00:08:14] For employers, executives, team leaders, and entrepreneurs, it's essential our health and well-being continue to take center stage.

[00:08:22] This will include nurturing a psychologically safe working environment that promotes positive, meaningful connection, mental well-being, and happiness.

[00:08:35] You just listened to the post titled, The One Thing That Makes for a Happier, Longer Life, by Dr. Jenny Brockes of drjennybrockes.com.

[00:08:44] Dr. Neil here for my commentary.

[00:08:46] It's true, as Dr. Brockes said, one of the key components of living longer, happier lives is staying social.

[00:08:53] In today's post, Dr. Brockes mentioned that staying social helps us feel good, which definitely improves our feelings of well-being.

[00:08:59] But when it comes to dementia and Alzheimer's prevention, researchers suspect that there are possibly two reasons why staying social may be helpful, especially as we get older.

[00:09:11] One reason is that even casual social relationships can include exposure to different ideas, different information, activities that we're not used to, verbal and facial cues, different speech patterns.

[00:09:25] And these kinds of interactions can help the brain stay alert, especially when compared to more comfortable exchanges with immediate family members, the ones, you know, we're used to seeing every day.

[00:09:35] And second, it may help by directly increasing connections between brain cells and may even help the brain repair itself.

[00:09:44] If the brain can repair itself, well now, the risk of Alzheimer's and dementia go down.

[00:09:50] So if you haven't had a face-to-face interaction in a while, maybe use social media or pick up the phone, call someone, and schedule a meetup.

[00:10:00] All right, that'll do it for today.

[00:10:02] I hope you're having a great day so far.

[00:10:03] Thank you so much for being here.

[00:10:05] And I'll see you back here on tomorrow's episode, where your optimal life awaits.

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