Money doesn’t buy happiness, but it might help you live longer.
Being wealthy can add up to nine years to your life, a new study published in the Journal of Gerontology suggests.
Researchers looked at data from more than 25,000 people aged 50 and above and found that those who are rich live more years free from illness and disability than those who are the poorest.
At age 50, the wealthiest men in England and the US lived around an extra 31 years in good health compared with around 22-23 years for those in the poorest group.
Women from the wealthiest groups in the US and England lived around an extra 33 years in good health compared with 24-25 years for the poorest.
Analysis didn’t show any significant difference between the health of those in the US and in England.
The research doesn’t look too deeply into why this might be, but the impact of wealth on wellbeing could be due to reduced stress or access to treatments and wellbeing tools.
The team, led by University College London (UCL), concluded: ‘Inequalities in healthy life expectancy exist in both countries and are of similar magnitude.
‘In both countries efforts in reducing health inequalities should target people from disadvantaged socioeconomic groups.’
Dr Paola Zaninotto, lead author of the report from UCL, said: ‘While life expectancy is a useful indicator of health, the quality of life as we get older is also crucial.
‘By measuring healthy life expectancy we can get an estimate of the number of years of life spent in favourable states of health or without disability.
‘Our study makes a unique contribution to understanding the levels of inequalities in health expectancies between England and the US where healthcare systems are very different.’
If you’re after a more achievable way to improve your health, without having to earn a load of money, research found that drinking green tea is linked to a longer and healthier life, too. Drink up.
If you want tips and tricks on saving money, as well as chat about cash and alarms on deals and discounts, join Money Pot, our new Facebook group.
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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/01/15/rich-adds-nine-years-life-12059716/
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