It may come as old news to many women, but it seems a bit of retail therapy really is good for you.
A day at the shops can help you live longer, says a study.
And surprisingly, the benefits are actually greater for men.
The study even suggests the long-term survival benefits of shopping are better than going to the gym.
Seeing friends and just people-watching can stave off loneliness and improve psychological health, suggests research published online in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
It looked at almost 1,850 people aged 65 and over living independently at home in Taiwan, who were asked how often they went shopping.
The researchers then tracked how long each of the participants lived by linking individuals to national death registration data between 1999 and 2008.
They found those who shopped daily lived longer than those who shopped less frequently, even after taking account of people’s physical or other health problems.
Going to the shops every day cut the chances of a participant dying during the period of the study by more than a quarter compared with those who don’t shop regularly.
Older men who frequently popped out to the shops had the best survival record, with a reduction of 28 per cent in their chances of dying, while older women saw slightly less benefit with a 23 per cent cut in dying.
Researchers led by Dr Yu-Hung Chang at the National Health Research Institutes, in Zhunan, Taiwan, accept that those who shopped regularly may have been in better health to begin with.
They said: 'An elder who shops less for food would be at risk of poorer diet quality necessary to maintain health. A vicious cycle that involves limited shopping and poor diet could evolve for elders.'
But the study added: ‘In shopping venues, socialising with, or watching others can provide social and mental benefits.
‘Compared with other types of leisure-time physical activity, like formal exercise, which usually requires motivation and sometimes professional instruction, shopping is easier to undertake and maintain.
參考譯文:
這對(duì)許多女人來(lái)說(shuō)也許不是什么新聞,但是逛街似乎確實(shí)對(duì)人有好處。
一項(xiàng)研究稱(chēng),在商店里逛上一天可以讓你更長(zhǎng)壽。
令人意外的是,事實(shí)上逛街對(duì)男人的益處更大。
該研究還顯示,長(zhǎng)期來(lái)看,逛街比健身還更有助于長(zhǎng)壽。
這一發(fā)表在《流行病學(xué)與公共衛(wèi)生雜志》網(wǎng)刊上的研究表明,見(jiàn)見(jiàn)朋友或光是看看路人就可以排遣寂寞,改善心理健康。
該研究調(diào)查了臺(tái)灣1850名在家中獨(dú)立生活且年齡在65歲以上的老人,了解他們出去購(gòu)物的頻率。
研究人員還通過(guò)跟進(jìn)1999年到2008年間臺(tái)灣死亡登記資料,了解每位參與者的壽命。
研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn),在將這些人的身體狀況、疾病等因素考慮在內(nèi)的情況下,那些每天都出去購(gòu)物的人比那些不經(jīng)常購(gòu)物的人壽命更長(zhǎng)。
在參與調(diào)查的人當(dāng)中,每天都去商店購(gòu)物的人在研究進(jìn)行過(guò)程中死亡的幾率比那些不定期購(gòu)物的人要低25%以上。
經(jīng)常逛街的老年男性壽命最長(zhǎng),逛街使他們的死亡率降低了28%。相比而言,逛街對(duì)老年女性的益處則相對(duì)小些,能使她們的死亡率降低23%。
研究人員承認(rèn),那些定期購(gòu)物的人也許原本身體就比較好。該研究的領(lǐng)頭人是位于竹南的臺(tái)灣衛(wèi)生研究院的張宇宏(音譯)醫(yī)生。
他們說(shuō):“一個(gè)不經(jīng)常外出購(gòu)買(mǎi)食品的老年人,他的膳食質(zhì)量可能無(wú)法達(dá)到維持健康所需的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)。這將造成惡性循環(huán),一方面不常購(gòu)物導(dǎo)致飲食不良,而飲食不良又會(huì)限制老年人的出行。”
不過(guò)研究補(bǔ)充說(shuō):“在購(gòu)物場(chǎng)所,和人交談,或是看看其他人也可以豐富社交生活,有益心理健康。
“其他的休閑體育活動(dòng),如正規(guī)的鍛煉通常需要?jiǎng)恿Σ拍軋?jiān)持,有時(shí)還需要專(zhuān)業(yè)指導(dǎo),相比之下,逛街則更容易進(jìn)行,也更容易堅(jiān)持下去。”