In the News (from The Telegraph): “A study, into 40,000 adults across ten years, has found those with low expectations for a “satisfying future” actually led healthier lives.

“In contrast, people who were “overly optimistic” about the days ahead had a greater risk of disability or death within ten years.

“The extraordinary research, published by the American Psychological Association, will not doubt prove comfort to anyone with a tendency to grumpiness.

“Frieder R. Lang, lead author of the study from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg in Germany, said: ‘Our findings revealed that being overly optimistic in predicting a better future was associated with a greater risk of disability and death within the following decade.
“Pessimism about the future may encourage people to live more carefully, taking health and safety precautions. …

“Older people, who tended to have a ‘darker outlook’ on the future, were shown to be the most accurate in their predictions, with optimistic youngsters overestimating their success. …

“Previous studies have suggested that ‘unrealistic optimism’ about the future can help people feel better while facing inevitable negative outcomes, such as terminal disease.”

My Comment: Pessimism about one’s forces but optimism about the forces of society with which one is connected is the optimal approach to reality.
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