Love, Longevity & Toxic Thoughts

If you are reading this, it’s likely you are someone who is committed to a healthy, spiritual lifestyle of meditating, yoga, exercise, practicing loving kindness and eating organic, non-GMO foods. Chances are you are focused on supplying your life and your body with things that have the highest-level of nourishment. What you probably don’t know is that there is something that quickly wipes out the benefits of all of this…. Having toxic and judgmental thoughts about your spouse!

Research shows that these negative emotions and thoughts actually suppress your immune system.

The latest science now shows that the #1 thing that will extend your life and contribute to the quality of your life, for many years, is a happy marriage!

Known as “the marriage effect” it’s now proven that happily married couples are:

• More likely to live longer.
• More likely to be physically and mentally healthier and happier.
• More likely to recover from illness quicker and with greater success.

And for men, this is really important to know:

A 2007 study found that the rate of death of single men over age 40 was twice as high than that of married men. Marriage for men is a lifesaver.

And for those of you of the generation that would prefer to shack up over getting legally married, you need to know that living together is not the same as being married to each other. It was found that happy couples who are living together in a committed, unmarried relationship don’t receive the benefit of The Marriage Effect.

When I asked Harville Hendrix  (love expert extraordinaire, whom Oprah calls The Marriage Whisperer) about it, he explained that it has to do with safety and security. On the unconscious level, those committed but unmarried couples do not experience the same level of safety that married couples do.  Safety is one of our most profound human needs.

What about those couples who lived together for years very successfully but then got married and soon divorced? Harville says the reason stems from the emergence of the real work of marriage only after we take those sacred vows. It seems that we have to work for our security, but the pay-off is longevity and a more stable lifestyle.

More good news:  Sex can save your life!  Just as you commit to eating right and exercising for your well being and health, it’s important to make sure you are having sex…. the more the better.  According to leading sex expert and researcher, Dr. Pepper Schwartz of the University of Washington, studies shows that for women, sex provides lower anxiety, more vitality, a higher quality of life all while building immunity.

For men, sex one time a month of more will reduce his risk of dying by 60%.  The men who had sex twice a week (or more) were least likely to die and sex provides protection for men against cancer and heart disease.

Bottom line:  A happy, sexy marriage is one key to a long, satisfying healthy life.  Add this to the top of your program and watch what happens!