Happy wife, happy life? Science shows your partners good mood has a huge impact on your health

You know the saying “What’s yours is mine”? Well, it seems like that might be true for more than just your husband’s socks. A recent study published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology found that your partner’s good mood can make you feel happier as well.Researchers analyzed the data of 321 couples from Germany and Canada and discovered that when someone’s partner was feeling peppier than usual, it decreased their own levels of cortisol — the stress hormone — even if they weren’t feeling so great to begin with. This effect was even more pronounced among older adults who reported higher levels of relationship satisfaction. What’s interesting to note is that the inverse wasn’t necessarily true — meaning there was no observed association between someone’s bad mood and their partner’s cortisol levels. The participants weren’t exactly spring chickens in the midst of their honeymoon period either — they were aged between 56 and 87, and the average length of the relationships was 43.97 years. As such, lead author Tomiko Yoneda, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of California in Davis, believes the findings suggest that older couples in long-term, committed relationships find ways to protect one another from the impact of negative emotions. This is significant, as adults can often find it harder to regulate their moods as they age.Cortisol tends to stay elevated for longer periods in older adults after a stressful event, and an aging brain may struggle to adapt to stressors over time. When you add the effects of chronic physical pain, reduced mobility and social isolation — it can be a pretty miserable experience.  Subscribe to our weekly Post Care newsletter! Please provide a valid email address.

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