{"id":100564,"date":"2012-02-02T08:00:35","date_gmt":"2012-02-02T13:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"\/gazette\/?p=100564"},"modified":"2019-03-21T17:45:21","modified_gmt":"2019-03-21T21:45:21","slug":"decoding-keys-to-a-healthy-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2012\/02\/decoding-keys-to-a-healthy-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Decoding keys to a healthy life"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t
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\u201cWe used to think that if you had relatives who lived to a ripe old age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, a psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital, and an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d<\/p>

Stephanie Mitchell\/Harvard Staff Photographer<\/p><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\t

\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tHealth\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\n\t\t

\n\t\tDecoding keys to a healthy life\t<\/h1>\n\n\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t
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\n\t\tAlvin Powell\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t

\n\t\t\tHarvard Staff Writer\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/address>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t

\n\t\t\t74 years young, Harvard study continues to yield a treasure trove of data\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\n<\/header>\n\n\n\n
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For 74 years, one of the longest-running studies of normal adult development has been examining not disease and illness, but what may be life\u2019s magic question: How can you live long and happy?<\/p>\n

The answers that have emerged \u2014 and are still emerging \u2014 are surprising and obvious both. Having a difficult childhood, for example, matters a lot in early adulthood, but its effects fade as the years go by. Among those who had tough beginnings, self-starters who seek out jobs as kids do better than those who don\u2019t. And education \u2014 specifically going to college \u2014 is more important than money or social status in determining lifetime success.<\/p>\n

More recently, the study\u2019s aging subjects have shown that one\u2019s situation at age 50 has more to do with one\u2019s health and happiness at 70 than what happened earlier in life. And surprisingly, the quality of vacations younger in life \u2014 a measure of the ability to play \u2014 is a better indicator of late-life happiness than income.<\/p>\n

The study highlights both controllable and uncontrollable factors that affect healthy aging. While there\u2019s not much someone can do about parents\u2019 social class, early family stability, or ancestors\u2019 longevity, a person certainly has a say over whether to smoke, abuse alcohol, exercise, and keep weight down. The study also highlights the importance of a healthy, stable marriage to late-life happiness and underlines the importance of having mature coping mechanisms for the adversity sure to come.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe used to think that if you had relatives who lived to a ripe old age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development<\/a>, a psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital<\/a>, and an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School<\/a>. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d<\/p>\n

Waldinger became director of the Harvard study in 2003, when longtime director George Vaillant stepped down from day-to-day management. To Vaillant, who continues to work on the study, the most important findings concerned the negative effects of alcohol on marital and lifetime success and the evidence that programs like Alcoholics Anonymous work better than other interventions. The study also added nuance to understanding adult development, Vaillant said, which is often thought of as stalling in middle age or peaking at 50 and then declining.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou only have to think of distinguished 70-year-olds in art and politics to see that something is wrong with that view,\u201d Vaillant said. \u201cAdult development from 30 to 80 certainly takes place. [But] it\u2019s like watching the hour hand of a clock; that\u2019s why it\u2019s not appreciated.\u201d<\/p>\n

Waldinger said the study\u2019s central focus now is on marriage, examining how couples have weathered life\u2019s storms and cope with challenges such as declining health and concerns about finances. In recent interviews, researchers asked older couples about conflicts and how they resolve them. But couple after couple, Waldinger said, couldn\u2019t recall conflicts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey said, \u2018We used to argue about it, but we just don\u2019t anymore,\u2019 \u201d Waldinger said. \u201cThe main developmental task for younger couples is managing conflicts. The main task for older couples is mutual support. \u2026 Being in a good marriage buffers you from the effects of pain and disability.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both Waldinger and Vaillant have published extensively on the study\u2019s findings. Some of them were published just last year. In a recent paper, Waldinger, Elizabeth Kensinger, and Marc Schulz utilized neural imaging to find that older adults with positive outlooks process emotional information differently from those with more negative views. Vaillant, who has written scholarly articles and several books based on the study, is at work on a history of the study itself.<\/p>\n

The research has its roots in a Harvard University Health Services<\/a> examination of 268 members of Harvard classes between 1939 and 1944. Begun in 1938 and called the Grant Study, it started with exhaustive physical examinations and included regular follow-ups over the years.<\/p>\n

The second arm of the study began with Harvard Law Professor Sheldon Glueck, who recruited 456 young men from inner-city Boston neighborhoods between 1940 and 1945 as controls for a study of juvenile delinquency. They were added to the study in the 1970s. Today, just 68 of the Harvard cohort are still alive, many in their early 90s, while 120 of the Glueck Study are alive, most in their early to mid-80s.<\/p>\n

Over the decades, subjects have answered biennial questionnaires, allowed health information to be gathered from their doctors, and sat for in-depth interviews. In recent years, they\u2019ve also submitted to neuroimaging scans and given blood for DNA analysis. Researchers have also begun to engage more deeply with their wives, whose reaction, Waldinger said, was, \u201cIt\u2019s about time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though the study has led to many publications, Waldinger and Vaillant view the decades of data, interview notes, questionnaires, and videotapes as a barely tapped treasure trove for researchers, providing a rare view of much of these men\u2019s lives. Over the years, researchers have studied the effects of World War II combat, substance abuse, childhood trauma, education, and other factors. To make data easier to access for researchers, Waldinger said, they\u2019ve embarked on a digitization project for the records, currently held in 50 filing cabinets.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can search for the word \u2018father,\u2019 and the computer will pull out every time that word was used in a man\u2019s life,\u201d Waldinger said.<\/p>\n

Vaillant said the study still can surprise, even though he has been involved with the data for 40 years. Just last year, he said, he found that 57 percent of all divorces among Grant Study men involved alcoholism. That statistic had been artificially low until then because, though the men had spoken of their own alcohol problems, many hadn\u2019t been forthcoming about those of their wives until later in life.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s still a treasure trove, and with each passing year more people mine it in different and imaginative ways,\u201d Vaillant said.<\/p>\n

In addition to adding new genetic techniques, Waldinger said the researchers are seeking funding to continue the study by enrolling children and even grandchildren, an opportunity rarely replicated. That\u2019s because most longitudinal studies \u2014 which follow subjects over long periods \u2014 fade after a decade or so because subjects drop out, funding dries up, and researchers move on to new projects. A study lasting as many decades as the Harvard one is a bit freakish, Waldinger said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know how they felt about their parents when they were 19, we know how their parents felt about them, we know what their childhoods were like,\u201d Waldinger said. \u201cIt\u2019s so unique, it\u2019ll never be done again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Now 74 years young, the Harvard Study of Adult Development continues to yield a treasure trove of data about how people behave, and change \u2014 including predictions of strong indicators to a happy life. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":105622744,"featured_media":100865,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"gz_ga_pageviews":26,"gz_ga_lastupdated":"2022-05-16 11:40","document_color_palette":"crimson","author":"Alvin Powell","affiliation":"Harvard Staff 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age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, a psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital, and an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d","mediaId":100865,"mediaSize":"full","mediaType":"image","mediaUrl":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/010612_waldinger_bob_021_605.jpg","poster":"","title":"Decoding keys to a healthy life","subheading":"74 years young, Harvard study continues to yield a treasure trove of data","centeredImage":true,"className":"is-style-full-width-text-below","mediaHeight":403,"mediaWidth":605,"backgroundFixed":false,"backgroundTone":"light","coloredBackground":false,"displayOverlay":true,"fadeInText":false,"isAmbient":false,"mediaLength":"","mediaPosition":"","posterText":"","titleAbove":false,"useUncroppedImage":false,"lock":[],"metadata":[]},"innerBlocks":[],"innerHTML":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img alt=\"\" height=\"403\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/010612_waldinger_bob_021_605.jpg\" width=\"605\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><p class=\"wp-element-caption--caption\">\u201cWe used to think that if you had relatives who lived to a ripe old age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, a psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital, and an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d<\/p><p class=\"wp-element-caption--credit\">Stephanie Mitchell\/Harvard Staff Photographer<\/p><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","innerContent":["<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img alt=\"\" height=\"403\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/010612_waldinger_bob_021_605.jpg\" width=\"605\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><p class=\"wp-element-caption--caption\">\u201cWe used to think that if you had relatives who lived to a ripe old age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, a psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital, and an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d<\/p><p class=\"wp-element-caption--credit\">Stephanie Mitchell\/Harvard Staff Photographer<\/p><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n"],"rendered":"<header\n\tclass=\"wp-block-harvard-gazette-article-header alignfull article-header is-style-full-width-text-below centered-image\"\n\tstyle=\" \"\n>\n\t<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img alt=\"\" height=\"403\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/010612_waldinger_bob_021_605.jpg\" width=\"605\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><p class=\"wp-element-caption--caption\">\u201cWe used to think that if you had relatives who lived to a ripe old age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, a psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital, and an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d<\/p><p class=\"wp-element-caption--credit\">Stephanie Mitchell\/Harvard Staff Photographer<\/p><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\t<div class=\"article-header__content\">\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"article-header__category\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/section\/health\/\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\tHealth\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\n\t\t<h1 class=\"article-header__title wp-block-heading \">\n\t\tDecoding keys to a healthy life\t<\/h1>\n\n\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t<div class=\"article-header__meta\">\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-post-author\">\n\t\t\t<address class=\"wp-block-post-author__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"author wp-block-post-author__name\">\n\t\tAlvin Powell\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-post-author__byline\">\n\t\t\tHarvard Staff Writer\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/address>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t<time class=\"article-header__date\" datetime=\"2012-02-02\">\n\t\t\tFebruary 2, 2012\t\t<\/time>\n\n\t\t<span class=\"article-header__reading-time\">\n\t\t\t6 min read\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"article-header__subheading wp-block-heading\">\n\t\t\t74 years young, Harvard study continues to yield a treasure trove of data\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\n<\/header>\n"},"2":{"blockName":"core\/group","attrs":{"templateLock":false,"metadata":{"name":"Article content"},"align":"wide","layout":{"type":"constrained","justifyContent":"center"},"tagName":"div","lock":[],"className":"","style":[],"backgroundColor":"","textColor":"","gradient":"","fontSize":"","fontFamily":"","borderColor":"","ariaLabel":"","anchor":""},"innerBlocks":[{"blockName":"core\/freeform","attrs":{"content":"","lock":[],"metadata":[]},"innerBlocks":[],"innerHTML":"\n\t\t<p>For 74 years, one of the longest-running studies of normal adult development has been examining not disease and illness, but what may be life\u2019s magic question: How can you live long and happy?<\/p>\n<p>The answers that have emerged \u2014 and are still emerging \u2014 are surprising and obvious both. Having a difficult childhood, for example, matters a lot in early adulthood, but its effects fade as the years go by. Among those who had tough beginnings, self-starters who seek out jobs as kids do better than those who don\u2019t. And education \u2014 specifically going to college \u2014 is more important than money or social status in determining lifetime success.<\/p>\n<p>More recently, the study\u2019s aging subjects have shown that one\u2019s situation at age 50 has more to do with one\u2019s health and happiness at 70 than what happened earlier in life. And surprisingly, the quality of vacations younger in life \u2014 a measure of the ability to play \u2014 is a better indicator of late-life happiness than income.<\/p>\n<p>The study highlights both controllable and uncontrollable factors that affect healthy aging. While there\u2019s not much someone can do about parents\u2019 social class, early family stability, or ancestors\u2019 longevity, a person certainly has a say over whether to smoke, abuse alcohol, exercise, and keep weight down. The study also highlights the importance of a healthy, stable marriage to late-life happiness and underlines the importance of having mature coping mechanisms for the adversity sure to come.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe used to think that if you had relatives who lived to a ripe old age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.adultdevelopmentstudy.org\">Harvard Study of Adult Development<\/a>, a psychiatrist at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.massgeneral.org\/\">Massachusetts General Hospital<\/a>, and an associate professor of psychiatry at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.hms.harvard.edu\/\">Harvard Medical School<\/a>. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Waldinger became director of the Harvard study in 2003, when longtime director George Vaillant stepped down from day-to-day management. To Vaillant, who continues to work on the study, the most important findings concerned the negative effects of alcohol on marital and lifetime success and the evidence that programs like Alcoholics Anonymous work better than other interventions. The study also added nuance to understanding adult development, Vaillant said, which is often thought of as stalling in middle age or peaking at 50 and then declining.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou only have to think of distinguished 70-year-olds in art and politics to see that something is wrong with that view,\u201d Vaillant said. \u201cAdult development from 30 to 80 certainly takes place. [But] it\u2019s like watching the hour hand of a clock; that\u2019s why it\u2019s not appreciated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Waldinger said the study\u2019s central focus now is on marriage, examining how couples have weathered life\u2019s storms and cope with challenges such as declining health and concerns about finances. In recent interviews, researchers asked older couples about conflicts and how they resolve them. But couple after couple, Waldinger said, couldn\u2019t recall conflicts.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey said, \u2018We used to argue about it, but we just don\u2019t anymore,\u2019 \u201d Waldinger said. \u201cThe main developmental task for younger couples is managing conflicts. The main task for older couples is mutual support. \u2026 Being in a good marriage buffers you from the effects of pain and disability.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Both Waldinger and Vaillant have published extensively on the study\u2019s findings. Some of them were published just last year. In a recent paper, Waldinger, Elizabeth Kensinger, and Marc Schulz utilized neural imaging to find that older adults with positive outlooks process emotional information differently from those with more negative views. Vaillant, who has written scholarly articles and several books based on the study, is at work on a history of the study itself.<\/p>\n<p>The research has its roots in a <a href=\"https:\/\/huhs.harvard.edu\">Harvard University Health Services<\/a> examination of 268 members of Harvard classes between 1939 and 1944. Begun in 1938 and called the Grant Study, it started with exhaustive physical examinations and included regular follow-ups over the years.<\/p>\n<p>The second arm of the study began with Harvard Law Professor Sheldon Glueck, who recruited 456 young men from inner-city Boston neighborhoods between 1940 and 1945 as controls for a study of juvenile delinquency. They were added to the study in the 1970s. Today, just 68 of the Harvard cohort are still alive, many in their early 90s, while 120 of the Glueck Study are alive, most in their early to mid-80s.<\/p>\n<p>Over the decades, subjects have answered biennial questionnaires, allowed health information to be gathered from their doctors, and sat for in-depth interviews. In recent years, they\u2019ve also submitted to neuroimaging scans and given blood for DNA analysis. Researchers have also begun to engage more deeply with their wives, whose reaction, Waldinger said, was, \u201cIt\u2019s about time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Though the study has led to many publications, Waldinger and Vaillant view the decades of data, interview notes, questionnaires, and videotapes as a barely tapped treasure trove for researchers, providing a rare view of much of these men\u2019s lives. Over the years, researchers have studied the effects of World War II combat, substance abuse, childhood trauma, education, and other factors. To make data easier to access for researchers, Waldinger said, they\u2019ve embarked on a digitization project for the records, currently held in 50 filing cabinets.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can search for the word \u2018father,\u2019 and the computer will pull out every time that word was used in a man\u2019s life,\u201d Waldinger said.<\/p>\n<p>Vaillant said the study still can surprise, even though he has been involved with the data for 40 years. Just last year, he said, he found that 57 percent of all divorces among Grant Study men involved alcoholism. That statistic had been artificially low until then because, though the men had spoken of their own alcohol problems, many hadn\u2019t been forthcoming about those of their wives until later in life.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s still a treasure trove, and with each passing year more people mine it in different and imaginative ways,\u201d Vaillant said.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to adding new genetic techniques, Waldinger said the researchers are seeking funding to continue the study by enrolling children and even grandchildren, an opportunity rarely replicated. That\u2019s because most longitudinal studies \u2014 which follow subjects over long periods \u2014 fade after a decade or so because subjects drop out, funding dries up, and researchers move on to new projects. A study lasting as many decades as the Harvard one is a bit freakish, Waldinger said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe know how they felt about their parents when they were 19, we know how their parents felt about them, we know what their childhoods were like,\u201d Waldinger said. \u201cIt\u2019s so unique, it\u2019ll never be done again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n","innerContent":["\n\t\t<p>For 74 years, one of the longest-running studies of normal adult development has been examining not disease and illness, but what may be life\u2019s magic question: How can you live long and happy?<\/p>\n<p>The answers that have emerged \u2014 and are still emerging \u2014 are surprising and obvious both. Having a difficult childhood, for example, matters a lot in early adulthood, but its effects fade as the years go by. Among those who had tough beginnings, self-starters who seek out jobs as kids do better than those who don\u2019t. And education \u2014 specifically going to college \u2014 is more important than money or social status in determining lifetime success.<\/p>\n<p>More recently, the study\u2019s aging subjects have shown that one\u2019s situation at age 50 has more to do with one\u2019s health and happiness at 70 than what happened earlier in life. And surprisingly, the quality of vacations younger in life \u2014 a measure of the ability to play \u2014 is a better indicator of late-life happiness than income.<\/p>\n<p>The study highlights both controllable and uncontrollable factors that affect healthy aging. While there\u2019s not much someone can do about parents\u2019 social class, early family stability, or ancestors\u2019 longevity, a person certainly has a say over whether to smoke, abuse alcohol, exercise, and keep weight down. The study also highlights the importance of a healthy, stable marriage to late-life happiness and underlines the importance of having mature coping mechanisms for the adversity sure to come.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe used to think that if you had relatives who lived to a ripe old age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.adultdevelopmentstudy.org\">Harvard Study of Adult Development<\/a>, a psychiatrist at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.massgeneral.org\/\">Massachusetts General Hospital<\/a>, and an associate professor of psychiatry at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.hms.harvard.edu\/\">Harvard Medical School<\/a>. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Waldinger became director of the Harvard study in 2003, when longtime director George Vaillant stepped down from day-to-day management. To Vaillant, who continues to work on the study, the most important findings concerned the negative effects of alcohol on marital and lifetime success and the evidence that programs like Alcoholics Anonymous work better than other interventions. The study also added nuance to understanding adult development, Vaillant said, which is often thought of as stalling in middle age or peaking at 50 and then declining.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou only have to think of distinguished 70-year-olds in art and politics to see that something is wrong with that view,\u201d Vaillant said. \u201cAdult development from 30 to 80 certainly takes place. [But] it\u2019s like watching the hour hand of a clock; that\u2019s why it\u2019s not appreciated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Waldinger said the study\u2019s central focus now is on marriage, examining how couples have weathered life\u2019s storms and cope with challenges such as declining health and concerns about finances. In recent interviews, researchers asked older couples about conflicts and how they resolve them. But couple after couple, Waldinger said, couldn\u2019t recall conflicts.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey said, \u2018We used to argue about it, but we just don\u2019t anymore,\u2019 \u201d Waldinger said. \u201cThe main developmental task for younger couples is managing conflicts. The main task for older couples is mutual support. \u2026 Being in a good marriage buffers you from the effects of pain and disability.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Both Waldinger and Vaillant have published extensively on the study\u2019s findings. Some of them were published just last year. In a recent paper, Waldinger, Elizabeth Kensinger, and Marc Schulz utilized neural imaging to find that older adults with positive outlooks process emotional information differently from those with more negative views. Vaillant, who has written scholarly articles and several books based on the study, is at work on a history of the study itself.<\/p>\n<p>The research has its roots in a <a href=\"https:\/\/huhs.harvard.edu\">Harvard University Health Services<\/a> examination of 268 members of Harvard classes between 1939 and 1944. Begun in 1938 and called the Grant Study, it started with exhaustive physical examinations and included regular follow-ups over the years.<\/p>\n<p>The second arm of the study began with Harvard Law Professor Sheldon Glueck, who recruited 456 young men from inner-city Boston neighborhoods between 1940 and 1945 as controls for a study of juvenile delinquency. They were added to the study in the 1970s. Today, just 68 of the Harvard cohort are still alive, many in their early 90s, while 120 of the Glueck Study are alive, most in their early to mid-80s.<\/p>\n<p>Over the decades, subjects have answered biennial questionnaires, allowed health information to be gathered from their doctors, and sat for in-depth interviews. In recent years, they\u2019ve also submitted to neuroimaging scans and given blood for DNA analysis. Researchers have also begun to engage more deeply with their wives, whose reaction, Waldinger said, was, \u201cIt\u2019s about time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Though the study has led to many publications, Waldinger and Vaillant view the decades of data, interview notes, questionnaires, and videotapes as a barely tapped treasure trove for researchers, providing a rare view of much of these men\u2019s lives. Over the years, researchers have studied the effects of World War II combat, substance abuse, childhood trauma, education, and other factors. To make data easier to access for researchers, Waldinger said, they\u2019ve embarked on a digitization project for the records, currently held in 50 filing cabinets.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can search for the word \u2018father,\u2019 and the computer will pull out every time that word was used in a man\u2019s life,\u201d Waldinger said.<\/p>\n<p>Vaillant said the study still can surprise, even though he has been involved with the data for 40 years. Just last year, he said, he found that 57 percent of all divorces among Grant Study men involved alcoholism. That statistic had been artificially low until then because, though the men had spoken of their own alcohol problems, many hadn\u2019t been forthcoming about those of their wives until later in life.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s still a treasure trove, and with each passing year more people mine it in different and imaginative ways,\u201d Vaillant said.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to adding new genetic techniques, Waldinger said the researchers are seeking funding to continue the study by enrolling children and even grandchildren, an opportunity rarely replicated. That\u2019s because most longitudinal studies \u2014 which follow subjects over long periods \u2014 fade after a decade or so because subjects drop out, funding dries up, and researchers move on to new projects. A study lasting as many decades as the Harvard one is a bit freakish, Waldinger said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe know how they felt about their parents when they were 19, we know how their parents felt about them, we know what their childhoods were like,\u201d Waldinger said. \u201cIt\u2019s so unique, it\u2019ll never be done again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n"],"rendered":"\n\t\t<p>For 74 years, one of the longest-running studies of normal adult development has been examining not disease and illness, but what may be life\u2019s magic question: How can you live long and happy?<\/p>\n<p>The answers that have emerged \u2014 and are still emerging \u2014 are surprising and obvious both. Having a difficult childhood, for example, matters a lot in early adulthood, but its effects fade as the years go by. Among those who had tough beginnings, self-starters who seek out jobs as kids do better than those who don\u2019t. And education \u2014 specifically going to college \u2014 is more important than money or social status in determining lifetime success.<\/p>\n<p>More recently, the study\u2019s aging subjects have shown that one\u2019s situation at age 50 has more to do with one\u2019s health and happiness at 70 than what happened earlier in life. And surprisingly, the quality of vacations younger in life \u2014 a measure of the ability to play \u2014 is a better indicator of late-life happiness than income.<\/p>\n<p>The study highlights both controllable and uncontrollable factors that affect healthy aging. While there\u2019s not much someone can do about parents\u2019 social class, early family stability, or ancestors\u2019 longevity, a person certainly has a say over whether to smoke, abuse alcohol, exercise, and keep weight down. The study also highlights the importance of a healthy, stable marriage to late-life happiness and underlines the importance of having mature coping mechanisms for the adversity sure to come.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe used to think that if you had relatives who lived to a ripe old age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.adultdevelopmentstudy.org\">Harvard Study of Adult Development<\/a>, a psychiatrist at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.massgeneral.org\/\">Massachusetts General Hospital<\/a>, and an associate professor of psychiatry at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.hms.harvard.edu\/\">Harvard Medical School<\/a>. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Waldinger became director of the Harvard study in 2003, when longtime director George Vaillant stepped down from day-to-day management. To Vaillant, who continues to work on the study, the most important findings concerned the negative effects of alcohol on marital and lifetime success and the evidence that programs like Alcoholics Anonymous work better than other interventions. The study also added nuance to understanding adult development, Vaillant said, which is often thought of as stalling in middle age or peaking at 50 and then declining.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou only have to think of distinguished 70-year-olds in art and politics to see that something is wrong with that view,\u201d Vaillant said. \u201cAdult development from 30 to 80 certainly takes place. [But] it\u2019s like watching the hour hand of a clock; that\u2019s why it\u2019s not appreciated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Waldinger said the study\u2019s central focus now is on marriage, examining how couples have weathered life\u2019s storms and cope with challenges such as declining health and concerns about finances. In recent interviews, researchers asked older couples about conflicts and how they resolve them. But couple after couple, Waldinger said, couldn\u2019t recall conflicts.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey said, \u2018We used to argue about it, but we just don\u2019t anymore,\u2019 \u201d Waldinger said. \u201cThe main developmental task for younger couples is managing conflicts. The main task for older couples is mutual support. \u2026 Being in a good marriage buffers you from the effects of pain and disability.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Both Waldinger and Vaillant have published extensively on the study\u2019s findings. Some of them were published just last year. In a recent paper, Waldinger, Elizabeth Kensinger, and Marc Schulz utilized neural imaging to find that older adults with positive outlooks process emotional information differently from those with more negative views. Vaillant, who has written scholarly articles and several books based on the study, is at work on a history of the study itself.<\/p>\n<p>The research has its roots in a <a href=\"https:\/\/huhs.harvard.edu\">Harvard University Health Services<\/a> examination of 268 members of Harvard classes between 1939 and 1944. Begun in 1938 and called the Grant Study, it started with exhaustive physical examinations and included regular follow-ups over the years.<\/p>\n<p>The second arm of the study began with Harvard Law Professor Sheldon Glueck, who recruited 456 young men from inner-city Boston neighborhoods between 1940 and 1945 as controls for a study of juvenile delinquency. They were added to the study in the 1970s. Today, just 68 of the Harvard cohort are still alive, many in their early 90s, while 120 of the Glueck Study are alive, most in their early to mid-80s.<\/p>\n<p>Over the decades, subjects have answered biennial questionnaires, allowed health information to be gathered from their doctors, and sat for in-depth interviews. In recent years, they\u2019ve also submitted to neuroimaging scans and given blood for DNA analysis. Researchers have also begun to engage more deeply with their wives, whose reaction, Waldinger said, was, \u201cIt\u2019s about time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Though the study has led to many publications, Waldinger and Vaillant view the decades of data, interview notes, questionnaires, and videotapes as a barely tapped treasure trove for researchers, providing a rare view of much of these men\u2019s lives. Over the years, researchers have studied the effects of World War II combat, substance abuse, childhood trauma, education, and other factors. To make data easier to access for researchers, Waldinger said, they\u2019ve embarked on a digitization project for the records, currently held in 50 filing cabinets.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can search for the word \u2018father,\u2019 and the computer will pull out every time that word was used in a man\u2019s life,\u201d Waldinger said.<\/p>\n<p>Vaillant said the study still can surprise, even though he has been involved with the data for 40 years. Just last year, he said, he found that 57 percent of all divorces among Grant Study men involved alcoholism. That statistic had been artificially low until then because, though the men had spoken of their own alcohol problems, many hadn\u2019t been forthcoming about those of their wives until later in life.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s still a treasure trove, and with each passing year more people mine it in different and imaginative ways,\u201d Vaillant said.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to adding new genetic techniques, Waldinger said the researchers are seeking funding to continue the study by enrolling children and even grandchildren, an opportunity rarely replicated. That\u2019s because most longitudinal studies \u2014 which follow subjects over long periods \u2014 fade after a decade or so because subjects drop out, funding dries up, and researchers move on to new projects. A study lasting as many decades as the Harvard one is a bit freakish, Waldinger said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe know how they felt about their parents when they were 19, we know how their parents felt about them, we know what their childhoods were like,\u201d Waldinger said. \u201cIt\u2019s so unique, it\u2019ll never be done again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n"}],"innerHTML":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide\">\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n","innerContent":["\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide\">\n\n","\n\n<\/div>\n"],"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide has-global-padding is-content-justification-center is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n\n\n\t\t<p>For 74 years, one of the longest-running studies of normal adult development has been examining not disease and illness, but what may be life\u2019s magic question: How can you live long and happy?<\/p>\n<p>The answers that have emerged \u2014 and are still emerging \u2014 are surprising and obvious both. Having a difficult childhood, for example, matters a lot in early adulthood, but its effects fade as the years go by. Among those who had tough beginnings, self-starters who seek out jobs as kids do better than those who don\u2019t. And education \u2014 specifically going to college \u2014 is more important than money or social status in determining lifetime success.<\/p>\n<p>More recently, the study\u2019s aging subjects have shown that one\u2019s situation at age 50 has more to do with one\u2019s health and happiness at 70 than what happened earlier in life. And surprisingly, the quality of vacations younger in life \u2014 a measure of the ability to play \u2014 is a better indicator of late-life happiness than income.<\/p>\n<p>The study highlights both controllable and uncontrollable factors that affect healthy aging. While there\u2019s not much someone can do about parents\u2019 social class, early family stability, or ancestors\u2019 longevity, a person certainly has a say over whether to smoke, abuse alcohol, exercise, and keep weight down. The study also highlights the importance of a healthy, stable marriage to late-life happiness and underlines the importance of having mature coping mechanisms for the adversity sure to come.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe used to think that if you had relatives who lived to a ripe old age, that was the best predictor\u201d of a long life, said Robert Waldinger, director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.adultdevelopmentstudy.org\">Harvard Study of Adult Development<\/a>, a psychiatrist at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.massgeneral.org\/\">Massachusetts General Hospital<\/a>, and an associate professor of psychiatry at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.hms.harvard.edu\/\">Harvard Medical School<\/a>. \u201cIt turns out that the lifestyle choices people make in midlife are a more important predictor of how long you live.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Waldinger became director of the Harvard study in 2003, when longtime director George Vaillant stepped down from day-to-day management. To Vaillant, who continues to work on the study, the most important findings concerned the negative effects of alcohol on marital and lifetime success and the evidence that programs like Alcoholics Anonymous work better than other interventions. The study also added nuance to understanding adult development, Vaillant said, which is often thought of as stalling in middle age or peaking at 50 and then declining.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou only have to think of distinguished 70-year-olds in art and politics to see that something is wrong with that view,\u201d Vaillant said. \u201cAdult development from 30 to 80 certainly takes place. [But] it\u2019s like watching the hour hand of a clock; that\u2019s why it\u2019s not appreciated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Waldinger said the study\u2019s central focus now is on marriage, examining how couples have weathered life\u2019s storms and cope with challenges such as declining health and concerns about finances. In recent interviews, researchers asked older couples about conflicts and how they resolve them. But couple after couple, Waldinger said, couldn\u2019t recall conflicts.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey said, \u2018We used to argue about it, but we just don\u2019t anymore,\u2019 \u201d Waldinger said. \u201cThe main developmental task for younger couples is managing conflicts. The main task for older couples is mutual support. \u2026 Being in a good marriage buffers you from the effects of pain and disability.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Both Waldinger and Vaillant have published extensively on the study\u2019s findings. Some of them were published just last year. In a recent paper, Waldinger, Elizabeth Kensinger, and Marc Schulz utilized neural imaging to find that older adults with positive outlooks process emotional information differently from those with more negative views. Vaillant, who has written scholarly articles and several books based on the study, is at work on a history of the study itself.<\/p>\n<p>The research has its roots in a <a href=\"https:\/\/huhs.harvard.edu\">Harvard University Health Services<\/a> examination of 268 members of Harvard classes between 1939 and 1944. Begun in 1938 and called the Grant Study, it started with exhaustive physical examinations and included regular follow-ups over the years.<\/p>\n<p>The second arm of the study began with Harvard Law Professor Sheldon Glueck, who recruited 456 young men from inner-city Boston neighborhoods between 1940 and 1945 as controls for a study of juvenile delinquency. They were added to the study in the 1970s. Today, just 68 of the Harvard cohort are still alive, many in their early 90s, while 120 of the Glueck Study are alive, most in their early to mid-80s.<\/p>\n<p>Over the decades, subjects have answered biennial questionnaires, allowed health information to be gathered from their doctors, and sat for in-depth interviews. In recent years, they\u2019ve also submitted to neuroimaging scans and given blood for DNA analysis. Researchers have also begun to engage more deeply with their wives, whose reaction, Waldinger said, was, \u201cIt\u2019s about time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Though the study has led to many publications, Waldinger and Vaillant view the decades of data, interview notes, questionnaires, and videotapes as a barely tapped treasure trove for researchers, providing a rare view of much of these men\u2019s lives. Over the years, researchers have studied the effects of World War II combat, substance abuse, childhood trauma, education, and other factors. To make data easier to access for researchers, Waldinger said, they\u2019ve embarked on a digitization project for the records, currently held in 50 filing cabinets.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can search for the word \u2018father,\u2019 and the computer will pull out every time that word was used in a man\u2019s life,\u201d Waldinger said.<\/p>\n<p>Vaillant said the study still can surprise, even though he has been involved with the data for 40 years. Just last year, he said, he found that 57 percent of all divorces among Grant Study men involved alcoholism. That statistic had been artificially low until then because, though the men had spoken of their own alcohol problems, many hadn\u2019t been forthcoming about those of their wives until later in life.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s still a treasure trove, and with each passing year more people mine it in different and imaginative ways,\u201d Vaillant said.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to adding new genetic techniques, Waldinger said the researchers are seeking funding to continue the study by enrolling children and even grandchildren, an opportunity rarely replicated. That\u2019s because most longitudinal studies \u2014 which follow subjects over long periods \u2014 fade after a decade or so because subjects drop out, funding dries up, and researchers move on to new projects. A study lasting as many decades as the Harvard one is a bit freakish, Waldinger said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe know how they felt about their parents when they were 19, we know how their parents felt about them, we know what their childhoods were like,\u201d Waldinger said. \u201cIt\u2019s so unique, it\u2019ll never be done again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n"}},"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":172374,"url":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2015\/07\/pesticide-found-in-70-percent-of-massachusetts-honey-samples\/","url_meta":{"origin":100564,"position":0},"title":"Pesticide found in 70 percent of Massachusetts\u2019 honey samples","author":"harvardgazette","date":"July 23, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"In a new study, Harvard researchers looked at pollen and honey samples collected from the same set of hives across Massachusetts. Findings show they contain at least one pesticide implicated in Colony Collapse Disorder.","rel":"","context":"In "Science & Tech"","block_context":{"text":"Science & Tech","link":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/section\/science-technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/honeybee605.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/honeybee605.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/honeybee605.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":308728,"url":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2020\/07\/disparities-in-life-expectancy-found-at-census-tract-level\/","url_meta":{"origin":100564,"position":1},"title":"Checking up on the nation","author":"Lian Parsons","date":"July 13, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The first study to examine life expectancy across more than 65,000 census tracts in the U.S. showed significant disparities within counties and states.","rel":"","context":"In "Health"","block_context":{"text":"Health","link":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/section\/health\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Man walks with cane.","src":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/061520_Stock_KS_019_2500.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/061520_Stock_KS_019_2500.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/061520_Stock_KS_019_2500.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/061520_Stock_KS_019_2500.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":102696,"url":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2012\/02\/ptsd\/","url_meta":{"origin":100564,"position":2},"title":"Repercussions of gender nonconformity","author":"harvardgazette","date":"February 20, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Children in the U.S. whose activity choices, interests, and pretend play before age 11 fall outside those typically expressed by their biological sex face increased risk of being physically, psychologically, and sexually abused, and of suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by early adulthood, according to a new study led\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Health"","block_context":{"text":"Health","link":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/section\/health\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/toys_605.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/toys_605.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/toys_605.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":337285,"url":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2022\/01\/pandemic-may-affect-babies-brain-development\/","url_meta":{"origin":100564,"position":3},"title":"How the pandemic may affect baby\u2019s brain","author":"harvardgazette","date":"January 21, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"For babies born during this pandemic, a study published in JAMA Pediatrics suggests their brains may not fully develop.","rel":"","context":"In "Health"","block_context":{"text":"Health","link":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/section\/health\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Baby smiling.","src":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/GettyImages-11662977491.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/GettyImages-11662977491.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/GettyImages-11662977491.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/GettyImages-11662977491.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":185275,"url":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2016\/07\/unsaturated-fats-linked-to-longer-healthier-life\/","url_meta":{"origin":100564,"position":4},"title":"Unsaturated fats linked to longer, healthier life","author":"harvardgazette","date":"July 5, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"A three-decade study conducted by Harvard Chan School lends further support to recent findings on fat intake and long-term health.","rel":"","context":"In "Health"","block_context":{"text":"Health","link":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/section\/health\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/unsaturated-fats-605.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/unsaturated-fats-605.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/unsaturated-fats-605.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":137898,"url":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2013\/05\/south-asia-institute-research-language-study-and-feet-on-the-street-experience\/","url_meta":{"origin":100564,"position":5},"title":"SAI offers ‘feet on the street’ experience","author":"harvardgazette","date":"May 30, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Since its inception in 2003, the South Asia Institute has continued the long tradition of collaboration between Harvard and South Asia.","rel":"","context":"In "Campus & Community"","block_context":{"text":"Campus & Community","link":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/section\/campus-community\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100564","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/105622744"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100564"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100564\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":269149,"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100564\/revisions\/269149"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/100865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100564"},{"taxonomy":"format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/gazette-formats?post=100564"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=100564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}