Immune system directly links personality to long-term mortality risk, study reveals
Ground-breaking research led by University of Limerick has revealed for the first time that the immune system directly links personality to long-term risk of death.
The study sheds new light on why people who are more conscientious tend to live longer.
Results from the new international study published in the journal
Brain, Behavior, and Immunity have found that the immune system plays a previously unknown role in the link between personality traits and long-term risk of death. Personality is known to be associated with long-term risk of death, it is a well replicated finding observed across numerous research studies internationally, explained Principal Investigator on the study Dr Páraic Ó Súilleabháin, from the Department of Psychology and Health Research Institute at University of Limerick, Ireland.
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Ground-breaking research led by University of Limerick has revealed for the first time that the immune system directly links personality to long-term risk of death.
The study sheds new light on why people who are more conscientious tend to live longer.
Results from the new international study published in the journal
Brain, Behavior, and Immunity have found that the immune system plays a previously unknown role in the link between personality traits and long-term risk of death. Personality is known to be associated with long-term risk of death, it is a well replicated finding observed across numerous research studies internationally, explained Principal Investigator on the study Dr Páraic Ó Súilleabháin, from the Department of Psychology and Health Research Institute at University of Limerick, Ireland.
“Our personality is critically important throughout our lives, from early stages in our development, to the accumulation of the impact of how we think, feel and behave across our lives, and in the years preceding our death.
“It is also becoming increasingly apparent how important personality actually is for our long-term health and resulting longevity,” Dr Ó Súilleabháin said.
It has been shown that people who have less of a tendency to be responsible, organised, and capable of self-control can be at a 40pc increased risk of future death compared with people who are more conscientious.
The UL researchers wanted to investigate if a biological pathway such as the immune system may explain why this happens.