A new study now finds that optimistic people tend to sleep for longer and have better quality sleep than those who have a more negative outlook towards life. The study was published in the journal Behavioral Medicine.
According to a story published in Daily Mail, the study, conducted at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, found that most positive people were 78 per cent more likely to describe their sleep quality as being good and get the recommended seven to nine hours of rest each night.
The study further found that they were approximately 75 per cent more likely that 'pessimistic people' to report no symptoms of insomnia or have daytime sleepiness.
While researchers are unsure what is the exact mechanism, but they believe that being optimistic helps diminish effects of stress, leading to a more pleasant sleep.
The study saw the team recruiting more than 3,500 people aged between 32 and 51 with the participants' optimism being measured using a survey that had them rate statements on optimism between a scale of one to five, with five being the highest.
For sleep, the volunteers were asked to rate the overall duration and quality of their sleep during the previous month and they were also asked how many hours of sleep did they actually get.
Researchers found that a high optimism score in participants increased their chance of getting a good night's sleep by 78 per cent.
Speaking about the study, lead author Dr Hernandez said that optimists are more likely to "engage in active problem-focused coping and to interpret stressful events in more positive ways, reducing worry and ruminative thoughts when they're falling asleep and throughout their sleep cycle."
Comments
0 comment