Part 2: Relationships Matter to Your Health
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Ever feel like you’re working out hard, eating all the right foods, and taking all the right supplements – but it just isn’t coming together?
Maybe your partner at home doesn’t support you. Maybe your friends only want to talk about their favorite weight loss pill or newest fad diet. Whoever it is, whatever it is… the point is:
Relationships Matter to Your Health!
They are often the missing piece in your equation:
- Your relationship with food,
- Your relationship with the people in your life, and
- Your relationship with yourself.
These three areas are key to your health and wellbeing. If there are issues in any one of these three areas, you won’t feel like “it’s coming together” until you address these relationships.
Here are some simple tips, and the things you need to pay attention to:
1. Good connections and social support can improve your health and increase the longevity of life and wellness.
For many of us, the past couple of months have been non-stop. There were holidays, family gatherings, time with friends, and religious/community/workplace activities, etc. But it was also a special time to check in with those we care about. During the holidays, we make the time to spend together — you catch up, exchange ideas, and lend social support to those in your network of family and friends.
Social connections not only give you pleasure, they can also influence your long-term health. (Of course, not every interaction is positive, but still, it’s something that we value during the holidays, amiright? I’m about to tell you why!)
The relationships you have with other people can be equally as powerful to your health as getting enough sleep, eating a good diet, and avoiding alcohol/cigarettes/etc. Dozens of studies have shown that people who have social support from family, friends and their community are happier, have fewer health problems, and live longer.
The flip side is the exact opposite, of course.
If your relationships with others aren’t strong, and/or you don’t have a good social support system, you’re more likely to have bouts with depression. Later in life, it can lead to cognitive decline and increased mortality.
A lack of strong relationships can increase your risk of premature death by 50 percent (according to a study looking at more than 300,000 people). This is a mortality risk equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and a greater risk to your health than obesity and physical inactivity.
So, what does this have to do with your STRESS levels? This leads me to No. 2:
2. Why social connections are important for your health.
There are many health benefits from connecting with others. Think of how you feel after a really great night talking with a girlfriend over dinner or even just after a great catch-up sesh on the phone — you probably hang up feeling refreshed, relaxed, happy…just plain BETTER.
Strong connections with others can actually help you relieve harmful levels of stress. Which, in turn, positively helps everything in your body from your coronary arteries to gut function, insulin regulation to your immune system. “Caring behaviors” (aka, having someone who cares about you that you can depend on, vent to, etc.) triggers the release of stress-reducing hormones in your body. The best part? This is no one-way street; the wellness-induced benefits of social support impact BOTH the giver and the receiver.
All this to say…
Caring for, and with, others is one of the easiest ways to improve your health.
It’s free! It doesn’t require anything (other than a little of your time, maybe access to a phone?), there’s no “regimen” (like a workout routine), and you can engage in this in lots of ways.
3. What counts as social support?
Research has identified lots of activities that qualify as “social support,” ranging from offers of help or advice to a simple act of affection (think of that really nice, warm hug you last gave or got).
Also, the QUALITY of relationships matter. This is key…
For example, women in their midlife who were in highly satisfying marriages or marital-type relationships had a lower risk for cardiovascular disease compared to those in less satisfying marriages. One study even found reduced immunity for couples who were having disagreements/fights.
Disappointing or negative relationships with any close family or friends have been linked to poorer health. So there’s something to be said about letting go of the people in your life who aren’t there for you the way you need it; if they can’t provide social support (and vice versa), then maybe it’s time to put a little distance between you.
Instead, use your time to invest in strengthening your important relationships with your spouse, your family, your friends — whoever you have that is someone you can count on. A network of important relationships with social support will make a difference in your life, especially as we age. People 75+ have a lower risk of dementia if they have a variety of satisfying contacts with friends and relatives.
4. Strengthen ties with those who are important.
We’re just in the second month of the New Year. After the holidays, it’s easy to get a little down as the whirlwind of social activities and family time (and vacation!) dwindles. It’s easy to lose track of the deeper purpose, which was to have an opportunity ( excuse?) for people to come together.
This month, consider your most meaningful relationships. How can you foster them throughout the year?
Choose activities that are most likely to bring you AND those you care about joy. Look at how you spend your time. Delegate or discard tasks that eat into that time, or figure out how you can do those things together with family or friends to make it more meaningful. Oftentimes, the hardest part is “making the plans” — and once you find the time, it’s always worth it!
Stay tuned for habits 3 and 4 to ditch stress and improve your health! Check out habit 1 here: Rewiring the Gut-Brain Axis to Reduce Stress and Improve Health.
Need some more guidance improving your stress? Take my stress solver quiz here and follow along on IG for all my top nutrition advice and inspiration to reduce your stress, improve your health, and take control of your life!
Reference:
Mullin, Gerald E. MD. (2011) The Inside Tract: Your Good Gut Guide to Great Digestive Health (pp. 117-123).
