If You’ve Got This Personality Trait, Research Says You're Way Healthier Than Most People
Good news for all the social butterflies out there.
Ben Dutton | Unsplash While we often focus on diet, exercise, and genetics when thinking about health, research has revealed something remarkable. Certain personality traits may be just as powerful as any wellness routine.
Good news, social butterfly: All those upcoming parties on your calendar might be the secret to staying healthy throughout the season. That's right:
If you have an extroverted personality, research says you might be healthier than everyone else.
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Extroverts have a stronger immune system.
Extroverts — people who are naturally more talkative, energetic, and assertive — are more likely to have strong immune systems, according to research in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology.
In contrast, researchers found that people who alternatively identified as conscientious or cautious had the weakest immune systems. You'd think it would be the opposite. In the study, participants were given a blood test and a personality quiz to measure five different traits.
Those with a more enthusiastic and outgoing personality had increased pro-inflammatory genes in white blood cells, which help fight off inflammatory diseases like celiac disease, irritable bowel syndrome, and asthma.
It appears that our immune systems may have evolved to match our social behavior patterns. Those who seek out more social contact developed stronger defenses against the pathogens they'd encounter, while those who are naturally more cautious developed different immune profiles suited to their lifestyle.
More introverted individuals, on the other hand, saw higher inflammatory genes and more compromised immune systems.
Researchers think that since extroverts are more social and therefore usually exposed to more people, their immune systems have become stronger to combat infections.
Being cautious isn't always a bad thing, though, especially when it comes to your health (appearing rude is worth not shaking that guy's hand after he sneezed!).
Plus, more introverted individuals can benefit from alone time in other ways, like becoming more self-sufficient, understanding themselves better, and being more creative.
Perhaps the most well-documented benefit is the relationship between solitude and creativity. Research consistently shows that many forms of creative thinking require sustained, uninterrupted focus, which are things that solitude readily provided.
Other traits typically seen as negative can also have a healthy impact. Pessimists, for example, may live 10 years longer than those who always see the bright side, according to a 2013 German study.
And being nervous on a big date (as introverts typically are) can actually produce adrenaline to give you energy and focus. So next time you have a date coming up, do some breathing exercises and tell yourself there's nothing to worry about. It'll be good for you.
But are introverts stuck with being sick? Of course not: There are plenty of strategies for surviving cold and flu season unscathed and building up your immune system, like listening to music and sleeping in a pitch-black room.
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