Mental Health’s Impact On Life Expectancy

To live a happy and long life we must feel safe and loved. It is true – mental health has a significant impact on our life expectancy. Keeping that in mind, we will explore what measures can be helpful for both our mental health and quality of life.

How does mental health in general affect our life expectancy?

Mental health is very important in today’s society. It is estimated that 1 in 5 people have a mental health problem. Most of us know someone who has these problems. When we talk about mental health, we have a few things in mind, including how we feel emotionally, how we deal with the problems in our lives, and how we judge other people. Such people often suffer in silence and are lonely. Sometimes medication side effects have a negative impact on these people’s health. Moreover, we should not forget the consequences of a horrible decision – suicide that can stop even a young person’s life and affect his or her relatives’ feelings and mental health. All in all, good mental health has a positive impact on people’s lives and, of course, life expectancy.

Time with loved ones and our emotional well being

The population is ageing fast in this century. In the entire European region, the number of older people is increasing every year, which is why big challenges are faced – a long life does not necessarily mean a healthy life, often on the contrary – a long life expectancy is associated with higher morbidity, disability, and mortality. It is predicted that in 2030, 1 in 6 inhabitants of the country will be 60 years old and over. Sometimes older people live alone. This has a negative impact on the quality of life of these people and, as research shows, promotes mental health disorders. Although the circle of social connections narrows over time, the need for communication – support and listening – never disappears. Psychologists, family doctors, and often relatives themselves encourage older people to talk to at least 3-5 friends a day. Communication even with random strangers provides positive emotions and allows you not to drown in everyday worries, even to forget physical pains. For instance, in 2006, researchers proved that socially isolated people who tried social creative activities felt positive effects on their physical and mental health changes and strengthened group identity, self-confidence, and self-esteem.

Sleep: the link between it and mental health

The World Health Organization classifies sleep as one of the most important components of a healthy lifestyle. Sleep remains one of the most interesting subjects of scientific research. In the last decades, a lot of information about the importance of sleep for health has been clarified and accumulated. Better sleep has an impact on mood and feelings. In the opposite way, poor sleep is associated with mental health problems (depression) and an increased risk of suicide. It was determined that 90 percent of people suffering from depression complain of insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea. Lack of sleep can reduce social skills, affect emotions, feelings, and harm communication. Scientists have found that good sleep has a positive impact on the ability to recognise important social signs and interferes with the processing of emotional information. People, who slept better, recognised anger and happiness better.

Eating disorders: the psychology of them and impact on quality of life

The body needs food rich in vitamins and other useful substances all year round. It is important to include as many different products as possible on the menu: vegetables, fruits, meat, dairy products, etc. A balanced diet is a special key to well-being, long and healthy life. However, sometimes due to various reasons, people suffer from bad eating habits. Anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating are among the most popular eating disorders, especially among teenagers: both young girls and young boys. However, these are not only nutritional disorders but also serious psychological diseases, which are simply necessary to be noticed and treated in time. At a young age, self-awareness as a person is still developing, so external pressure encourages concern about body composition and diet. This can lead to changes in thought processes and promote the development of eating disorders. Untreated eating disorders affect almost every aspect of an individual’s life and eventually damage the heart, digestive system, bones, teeth, skin, and hair and lead to many other illnesses or even death. All in all, eating disorders are somatic and psychological diseases that negatively affect our health and, in addition, have a negative impact on our life expectancy.

How to improve your mental health?

1. Never forget your value, be grateful for being alive, and understand that you are valuable just for existing in this world!
2. Spend more time with close people. Connecting with loved ones can help you cope with stress. Friends, relatives, and family help you feel loved and needed. Close people can offer a different approach to various things that do not give you peace. Relatives can support you in a difficult period and help you solve practical problems. You can share your feelings with them in various situations. This is especially important for maintaining good mental health.
3. Visit a psychiatrist, psychologist, or psychotherapist. The difference between a psychotherapist and a psychiatrist is that the psychotherapist must have mastered the methods of psychotherapeutic interaction with the patient. Psychotherapeutic interaction (psychotherapy) is a conversation treatment, during which a person has the opportunity to look at his spiritual problem more objectively, turn to his inner resources and receive support. All mental disorders and some somatic illnesses are treated with psychotherapy.
4. Call warmlines. If you are in need of support, reach out to a warmline. Warmlines offer a place to call when you need to talk to someone and share your feelings.
5. Sleep well. Sleep disorders not only affect health in general but also have a direct impact on mental health.
6. Control your sleep duration and time. It is important that the duration of sleep is at least 7-8 hours. It is a scientifically proven fact that lack of sleep has a negative impact on our mental health and life quality.
7. Attend cultural events or courses for learning. Here, the most important thing is the learning process itself. You can go to the theatre, read professional literature, take cooking classes, learn to sew, sing, etc.
8. Eat healthy food. Recent studies show a positive correlation between the risk of developing depression, a bad mood, and the consumption of high amounts of processed food and sugar. On the contrary, it has been proven that eating such foods, which are rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, nourishes the brain and protects it from oxidative stress, which also has a positive effect on our mental state.

This is a collaborative post.

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