Epidemiology Counts – Episode 26 – Optimism

Can a positive outlook on life actually have a direct effect on our health? Optimism appears to be linked to better health and the ability to cope with and bounce back from disease and surgery, while pessimistic people are more likely to develop hypertension, heart disease and die prematurely than their optimistic peers. So what is behind these relationships? Can we really just will good health into existence by just thinking about it? Or are optimistic persons more likely to engage in healthy behaviors? Or could a skeptic (those pessimists!) argue that healthier people can just afford to be more optimistic, or that socioeconomic status or some other life condition allows certain people to be healthier and more optimistic? In this episode we dive deep into the link between optimism and health as host Bryan James chats with Eric Kim, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia and Research Scholar at the Michael Smith Foundation for Health, and Bill Chopik , assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at Michigan State University.