What’s the secret ingredient for a stronger immune system, better mental health, and a longer life?

It’s just three little letters, but it makes a big impact.

Joy is the state of well-being and contentment, whatever season and circumstance of life. Scientists and researchers are taking a close look at how certain emotional states affect your overall health, and joy has bubbled to the surface as a huge predictor of the quality – and quantity – of life.

“Joy does not simply happen to us.
We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.”
— Henri J.M. Nouwen

While many of our emotions rise and fall at a fairly quick pace, joy is considered to be a feeling that is sustained and is enduring. It’s seen as much of a mindset as it is an emotion. You can have activities and experiences that bring you joy. You can also have joy in simple things, your morning routine, hearing a child laugh, sipping a cup of coffee that’s exactly the right temperature. Experiencing and practicing joy, as a consistent and prevailing practice in your life, can have surprising results.

“The joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives
and everything to do with the focus of our lives.”
— Russel M. Nelson

Building an Internal Culture of Joy

If you’re waiting for joy to come along, you might just miss the train. Researchers find that it is those who go in search of joy who find it. Cultivating joy in your life doesn’t have to be complicated and epic adventures, purchases, or achievements certainly don’t have a monopoly on joy.

Altrua HealthShare brand ambassador, musician, and We Are Messengers frontman Darren Mulligan says that he’s been on a joy journey in his own life over the past couple of years:

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  • Invest in your spiritual journey: Pew Research has found that those who are involved with a church and who are active in their spiritual lives are statistically happier than those who do not have an active spiritual practice.1

…the joy of the Lord is your strength
Nehemiah 8:10

  • Listen to music: Just like Darren Mulligan explained in his video above (sidenote: We Are Messengers will be performing at the iconic Red Rocks amphitheater on August 7th, 2024), joy in your today, right now. Need some help finding it? Music is a quick way to boost your mindset. Composer Eric Whitaker explains, ““There’s study after study that shows the health and well-being benefits of singing. We know now that just singing together in a group reduces the stress hormone cortisol. It releases endorphins. It causes a sense of joy and euphoria. “There are even studies that show singers who sing together tend to sync heartbeats.” Singing along with your favorite music, putting on that dance bop you’ve loved since high school, blasting your favorite high-energy praise and worship song, it can help you experience joy right along with the beat.2
  • Develop and maintain healthy relationships: A fascinating article from The Harvard Gazette titled “Good Genes Are Nice, But Joy Is Better” cites a study called the Harvard Study of Adult Development. This study followed a group of men for over 80 years, nineteen of whom are still alive today. The study revealed that the quality of someone’s relationships has a bigger impact on their overall health than genetics. Finding joy in your marriage was of particular influence, as those who reported greater joy in their marriages at the age of 50 were those who were in the best health at the age of 80.3
  • Joy moves: Of course you know that physical exercise increases the quality of your physical health, but it also raises the sense of joy and well-being in your life, which then also enhances the quality of your physical health, all in a big happy loop. From walking the block with your dog to taking a kayak out on the lake to trying out a dance class, physical activity doesn’t have to mean being stuck on the treadmill or at the gym. Movement and being outdoors can go a long way in enhancing your sense of joy.4

The Health Benefits of Joy

  • Better immunity: In a unique study from Carnegie Mellon University, researchers used a nasal spray with the cold virus to expose volunteers to the common cold. Those study participants who reported that they had lower levels of joy and other positive emotions ended up catching a cold at a much higher rate than participants who said they were joyful and content. The lead researcher, Sheldon Coehn, PhD, said, “People who scored low on positive emotional style were three times more likely to get sick than those with high positive emotional styles.”
  • Longer life: Joy and a positive outlook on life meant that participants in a recent study were 35% less likely to die over the course of the study than those participants who had more negative mindsets. In this five year study from University College London, researchers were surprised to see how much of an effect a joy-filled attitude has on longevity. Andrew Steptoe, Ph.D. and lead researcher, said, “We had expected that we might see a link between how happy people felt over the day and their future mortality, but we were struck by how strong the effect was.”
  • Less stress and anxiety: Your brain is a big chemistry set and depending on the experiences you have in life and how you look at them and process them, you receive boots of brain hormones that can raise your feelings of stress and anxiety or help reduce them. When you have joyful experiences, when you curate joy in your life, when you make it your mindset, your brain responds by producing more endorphins and serotonin. These brain chemicals help offset stress hormones like cortisol. Reduces Stress and Anxiety: Joy has a significant impact on reducing stress and anxiety levels. The production of endorphins and serotonin during joyful experiences helps counteract stress hormones like cortisol.
  • A healthier heart: A happier heart is a healthier heart. That’s what a study from the Harvard School of Public health discovered. Enhances Heart Health: Joyful emotions can improve cardiovascular health by lowering blood pressure and reducing the risk of heart disease. Ready for this amazing stat? The study showed that joyful, positive people have a 50% reduction in experiencing a heart attack.

Just like your usual morning cup of coffee alongside your attempt at solving Wordle, make joy part of your daily routine. Look for something that brings you joy when you awake in the morning. Appreciate a view that makes you joyful on your commute. Listen to that favorite song. Make joy your discipline. It could be one of your most important vitamins for a long and healthy life.

1 https://www.nidcr.nih.gov/health-info/cleft-lip-palate#:~:text=The%20Centers%20for%20Disease%20Control,is%20born%20with%20cleft%20palate.
2 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7532935/
3 https://www.cdc.gov/birth-defects/about/craniosynostosis.html#:~:text=Craniosynostosis%20(crane%2Deo%2Dsin,with%20craniosynostosis%20in%20the%20US.
4 https://www.chop.edu/conditions-diseases/hemifacial-microsomia#:~:text=Hemifacial%20microsomia%20is%20the%20second,every%203%2C500%20to%204%2C000%20births.