Geriatrics is about care and medical attention to the needs of the old |  Photo Credit: iStock Images

Normally, most researches that centre around longevity or healthy, long life, probe what foods the people who live long eat or what sets of genes they have inherited, the researchers from the University of Rome La Sapienza and the University of California, San Diego decided to take a different view of longevity.

They focussed on a cluster of villages in Italys mountainous Cilento region on the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea where 29 nonagenarians and centenarians and 51 family members aged 5175 years, lived a long and healthy existence. No diet study, no genetics study, for this study, the researchers focused on participants character traits.

This group was now a part of a larger study called CIAO (Cilento Initiative on Aging Outcomes) and they titled this study as "Mixed-methods quantitative-qualitative study of 29 nonagenarians and centenarians in rural Southern Italy: focus on positive psychological traits".When the Cambridge University Press published this study online on 12 December 2017 in International Psychogeriatrics, this is what they declared they had found.

Participants age 90 years had worse physical health but better mental well-being than their younger family members. Mental well-being correlated negatively with levels of depression and anxiety in both the group Researchers graded the elderly persons on issues like mental and physical well-being, resilience, optimism, anxiety, depression, and perceived stress. Several of them had been through life's upheavals... migrations, traumatic events, wars etc.Their lives were a picture of resilience and optimism, working hard, and bond with family and religion, but also a need for control and love of the land.

Ability to handle stress with positivity: "Older people are much better able to brush off lifes small stressors and accumulate a valuable thing called wisdom: being emotionally stable and compassionate, knowing yourself and being able to make smart social decisions," Dr Dilip V Jeste, senior associate dean for the Center of Healthy Aging at UC San Diego School of Medicine, told TIME. https://time.com/4464811/aging-happiness-stress-anxiety-depression/

Self-confidence and decision-making: In a piece CNBC carried on the study's findings, it noted that when the researchers compared the participants to their younger relatives between the ages of 51 and 75, they were surprised to find that, although the older generation had worse physical health, they scored higher on measures of self-confidence, decision-making and mental well-being, meaning they were generally less anxious and depressed.

Adaptability and resilience: This shows that there are certain attributes that are very important, including resilience, strong social support and engagement and having confidence in yourself, Jeste said. They exuded a sense of pride in their personal histories, beliefs and the trials theyve had to overcome throughout their lives.

Love of their land and people: The groups love of their land is a common theme and gives them a purpose in life. Most of them are still working in their homes and on the land. They think, This is my life and Im not going to give it up, said Anna Scelzo of the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse in Chiavarese, Italy, in a press release, as per the CNBC report.

A bond with family and religion: This seemed to give the elderly a sense of grounding. This paradox of ageing supports the notion that well-being and wisdom increase with ageing even though physical health is failing, said Jeste. As he told TIME, it shows that getting older is not all gloom and doom.

Exceptional longevity was characterized by a balance between acceptance of and grit to overcome adversities along with a positive attitude and close ties to family, religion, and land, providing purpose in life.

Disclaimer: Tips and suggestions mentioned in the article are for general information purposes only and should not be construed as professional medical advice. Always consult your doctor or a professional healthcare provider if you have any specific questions about any medical matter.

Read the rest here:
Secret to longevity: Common personality traits of people who live to be 100 years old - Times Now