Positive health: connecting well-being with biology.
Two key types of well-being, eudaimonic and hedonic, are reviewed. The first addresses ideas of self-development, personal growth and purposeful engagement, while the second is concerned with positive feelings such as happiness and contentment. How well-being varies by age and socio-economic standing is briefly summarized, followed by examination of its biological correlates (neuroendocrine, immune, cardiovascular, rapid eye movement (REM) sleep). Preliminary findings on a sample of ageing women showed that those with higher levels of eudaimonic well-being had lower levels of daily salivary cortisol, pro-inflammatory cytokines, cardiovascular risk, and longer duration REM sleep compared with those showing lower levels of eudaimonic well-being. Hedonic well-being, however, showed minimal linkage to biomarker assessments. Future research directions building on these initial findings are discussed.
Ryff
Carol D
CD
Institute on Aging, 2245 Medical Science Center, 1300 University Avenue, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA. cryff@wisc.edu
Singer
Burton H
BH
Dienberg Love
Gayle
G
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006240:Happiness; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism; D009042:Motivation; D009638:Norepinephrine / Q000378:metabolism; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D012307:Risk Factors; D012649:Self Concept; D012895:Sleep, REM / Q000502:physiology; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014922:Wisconsin
D016207:Cytokines; D006854:Hydrocortisone; D009638:Norepinephrine