Good relationships 'the key to longer lives'

Experts have been saying it for years, but now it truly does seem that a healthy relationship is the key to a longer life.

In addition, stressful partnerships may actually have the opposite effect and cause people to deteriorate, according to one specialist.

Paula Hall, a relationship psychotherapist who works with couples and individuals with relationship and sexual problems, said that a healthy relationship is central to the psychological, emotional and physical health of many people with medical insurance.

Her comments come on the back of recent research published by the American Cancer Society health journal, Cancer, which suggested the anxiety and upheaval involved in marriage separation can have significant effects on cancer survival rates.

Experts in the US conducted studies which revealed that people who were diagnosed with cancer while going through a separation with their partner were more likely to die from the condition, even more so than people who had already been divorced.

In contrast, those who were happily married at the time of diagnosis had the best outcomes over five and ten years after being told they had the disease and this is because their home lives had an effect on their physical wellbeing, Ms Hall stated.

"A secure environment is essential for wellbeing. When we feel secure we feel free and motivated to explore and expand into the world and seek fulfilment," she explained.

According to the specialist, this instinct is related to evolution, as survival is in the basic psychology of health cover holders.

"Human beings primary instinct is to find safety in secure groups, once that's fulfilled, we can search out other pleasures in life," she stated.

By Stephen Tate

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