U.S. findings: Religious people live longer than atheists

The benefits of religion for life expectancy have been proven. Photo: open sources

Research conducted by scientists from Ohio State University found that religious people live longer than agnostics and atheists, The Independent reports.

The findings, published in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science, show that religious individuals live on average 3–4 years longer than non-believers.

Specialists analyzed data from a thousand obituaries published in newspapers across 42 US states. Researchers examined the deceased's religious affiliation, lifestyle, family status, and habits. A further study of 500 obituaries from Iowa revealed an even greater difference in life expectancy between believers and atheists – 6.48 years.

The study's authors, Baldwin Way and Laura Wallace, believe that the longer life expectancy of religious people is influenced by a more active social life and volunteerism, which help address issues of loneliness and a sedentary lifestyle in old age.

Additionally, religious people are less prone to stress due to practices like prayer and meditation. They are also less likely to have harmful habits, which positively affects their health.

However, these obvious reasons only partially explain the difference in life expectancy between believers and atheists. Therefore, the researchers plan to study other aspects of religious people's behavior in the future.

Earlier, it was established in the United States that the maximum human life expectancy is 115 years, with the absolute maximum reaching 125 years.

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