A new study brings new meaning to all the sayings about feelings that comes from the heart. Researchers at the University of Illinois studied data from 5,100 people and soundly concluded that more optimistic people have healthier hearts when compared to the more pessimistic people of the world.

The data collected in the study included physical assessments and comparing blood pressure and cholesterol levels with guidelines suggested by the American Heart Association. This required recording body mass index, levels of glucose and serum cholesterol, and dietary habits.

To asses the levels of optimism in the participants, they gathered surveys that assessed their different levels of mental health. They also asked them to report on any physical diseases that they might have such as liver and kidney diseases, or arthritis.

The results came in quite clearly, and showed that more optimistic people are actually twice as likely to be in good cardiovascular health when compared with the pessimistic variety. Optimistic people were also found to be less likely to be obese, were more active in general, and were less likely to be smokers.

Even after the researchers adjusted for things like socioeconomic status, the results still showed that optimism was a common link with heart healthy people. The association actually got stronger when they took into account ages, race, ethnicity, education levels and income.

These finding are important, because even small changes in cardiovascular health can reduce the death rates when taking population numbers in account. With that being said, it might make sense to incorporate modifications of psychological well being into wellness plans in addition to modifications of diet and health.

Optimism alone might be the key towards getting the American Heart Association to meet their goal of improving heart health by 20 percent by the year 2020.

While ground breaking in certain ways, this information also makes a lot of sense based on what is already known about stress and feeling depressed. Chronic stress causes the body to enter a state of perceived danger. Nerve signals and hormonal fluctuations in stress lead to an excess release of adrenaline and the stress hormone cortisol. Adrenaline directly raises the heart rate and blood pressure, neither of which is good for heart health.

Cortisol slows down digestion and the immune system function, as neither of those things are considered most important by the body when the body is in a perceived “fight or flight” position. Cortisol also increases the sugars in the bloodstream which can lead to overeating in general.

Over the long term with these danger signals turned on, the body is at risk for sleeping problems, digestive issues, anxiety, weight gain, memory issues, and heart disease.

Incorporating more relaxing activities into life or taking on a more positive outlook on the other hand, helps to soothe the nerves and literally changes the way the hormones in the body are released.  Identifying stress triggers and rewriting emotional responses is one way to incorporate more positive thoughts, as is anything that can reduce stress physically and emotionally.