Turns out, being nice is actually selfish — in the best possible way. Rally digs into the science-backed health benefits of kindness that most of us have never heard of, including one statistic that stopped him cold. Doctors won’t prescribe this one, but maybe they should!
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
Rally:
Hey there Beautiful People…welcome to the Silver Beast Podcast!
I’m Rally Preston.
Is it just me, or does it seem like the world’s gotten a little meaner lately?
I don’t watch the news on TV anymore. I just can’t. Without Walter Cronkite, it’s too much now!
But I still scroll the news feeds on my phone. And I usually regret that too. Most of it’s doom and gloom stuff, right? What’s the point? Where’s the love these days? Uh, peace, love and understanding – remember that?
It’s like somewhere along the way, we all forgot how to just be nice to each other.
Or maybe it’s just me – maybe I’m just turning into one of those “back in the day” kind of guys. Which, honestly, I probably am. <chuckles>
But really, what happened to just plain, old-fashioned kindness? I think it’s still around. I know you’re a kind-hearted person, right? You wouldn’t put up with me if you weren’t.
OK, let’s talk about kindness for a minute — because there’s more to it than you might imagine. Sure it can make someone’s day; we all know that. But what you might not know – kindness is actually a powerful tool that can really do nice things for our own health and happiness.
Now I know this might sound kinda touchy-feely here, but there’s a lot of solid science behind kindness. Research says being kind can actually change your body chemistry, protect your heart, keep your brain sharper…all kinds of good stuff!
Alright, ready? Let’s start with this one: When you do something kind for someone else, your body literally changes its chemistry.
So when you’re kind, your cortisol levels drop. That’s your stress hormone. It does some good things once in a while for you, but overall, you want to keep it in check. Being kind actually helps do that.
And get this — your blood pressure goes down too. I mean, how many of us are walking around with blood pressure readings higher than our golf scores, right? <chuckle> Well, here’s a free way to help bring it down. Be nice to people.
So here’s something that really caught my eye. Recent studies show that older adults who regularly volunteer their time, or do other kind things for people, have a 24 percent lower risk of dying. Twenty-four percent!
And here’s something else — kindness doesn’t have to be some grand gesture. It’s not like you have to nail together houses for Habitat for Humanity or something…but that’s nice too.
We’re talking about small acts of kindness here. Calling a friend who lives alone. Mowing your neighbor’s lawn when you do yours. Sharing some vegetables from the garden. Simple things like that will do your heart good.
Okay, so there’s this study called the Baltimore Experience Corps trial. Very official-sounding name.
But what this study did was, they took older adults — people around our age — and randomly assigned them to either volunteer at elementary schools or just placed them on a waiting list. And after two years, the school volunteers, who donated their time and expertise to those schools? Well the researchers found their brains were working better. Wild huh?
They didn’t experience the normal memory decline and problems with, uhm, what they called, executive function — that’s your ability to plan and make decisions. The group that was assigned to just sit tight on the waiting list and do nothing; they didn’t show those kinds of brain improvements. Wow. Ok…
Now this next one on the kindness scale is pretty important. So, one of the biggest health risks we face as we get older isn’t high cholesterol or even high blood pressure. Can you guess what that is? It’s loneliness.
Now the research on this is solid. Chronic social isolation is linked to all kinds of nasty stuff — heart disease, depression, even early death. And here’s the scary part: This statistic: About 20 percent of adults report they feel lonely on a regular basis. That’s one in five adults feeling pretty isolated.
But when you engage in acts of kindness — whether that’s volunteering or making an effort to connect with people — you’re automatically building social connections. You’re getting out there. Moving around. Talking to folks. And there are obviously a lot of lonely people out there who would appreciate a new friend like you.
So there’s this researcher at Harvard — Dr. Laura Kubzansky and she talks about how doing kind things for others can give you a better perspective on your own problems.
Makes sense, right? Like, when you’re helping someone else, you get out of your own head for a bit. Your worries don’t seem quite so overwhelming when you see firsthand what other people are going through.
I remember years ago, I wasn’t having a good week…had plumbing issues at home and I was going to fix them – my back was already killing me, and I’m not a plumber, so you can imagine. Yeah so anyway, I ran into a friend I hadn’t seen in a while at Home Depot. And he told me about his wife – she was going through cancer treatments. I still remember that day – put things in perspective for me real quick. Never forgot it.
So sometimes, stepping outside of our own world of complaints — most likely pretty minor — can actually make us feel better. It’s like.. you can see the bigger picture. My problems? Not so bad in comparison.
Now here’s something I want to make sure we go over because it’s important. All this talk about being kind to others? It applies to being kind to yourself too.
And I believe this is where a lot of us struggle. Especially us older folks who grew up in a time when you were expected to suck it up and not complain about it. Taking care of yourself felt kinda selfish.
But research shows that self-compassion — treating yourself with the same kindness you’d show a good friend — has real health benefits. People who practice self-kindness have lower levels of depression and anxiety. They manage chronic conditions, like, uh, diabetes say, better.
So when you mess up, or when you’re having a rough day, try talking to yourself the way you’d talk to someone you really care about.
You gotta try and be gentle with yourself. Give yourself some grace. You gotta think to yourself… you’re out there doing the best you can with what you’ve got – and most times, that needs to be enough. In other words, be kind to yourself.
Alright, my kind and gentle Silver Beasties, what can we do with all this. How can we up our kindness factor, and reap the health benefits.
Well, you know I’ve got some action steps for this…
First, pick one small act of kindness you can do this week. Just one. Call someone you haven’t talked to in a while. Drop off some gluten-free chocolate chip cookies to a neighbor – I’ll give you my address. Or hey, let someone merge into backed-up traffic without muttering under your breath. Small stuff, but it all counts.
Second, look for opportunities to volunteer regularly. Now I know not everyone can commit to a big-time thing, but maybe you can read to kids at the library once a month. Or help out at a food bank or a dog shelter for a couple of hours. Find something that fits your schedule and what you’re able to do. There are so many quality organizations out there that would love your help right now.
Third, and this is probably the hardest one for us Silver Beasties — practice self-kindness. When you catch yourself being really hard on yourself, just stop and ask: “Would I talk to a good friend this way?” If the answer’s no, and it probably is, then rephrase that self-talk. Be your own best friend once in a while – you’ve earned it.
And finally, make kindness a habit. And for all of you, I bet it already is. But just in case, I’ll tell you the research shows that consistent kindness — not just random acts here and there — is what really moves the needle on your health. So think about it, look for those opportunities, and make kindness a part of your routine.
So here’s what we know, folks. Being kind isn’t just a nice idea.
It’s real medicine. It lowers your blood pressure, reduces stress, protects your heart, keeps your brain sharper, fights off loneliness – and might even help you live longer.
And here is one last thing to keep in mind…kindness is contagious. Now that’s a scientific fact – not just me saying it. When people see someone being kind, they’re more likely to be kind themselves.
Alright, that’s all I’ve got for today. Get out there and flex your kindness muscles. As we all know, the world could use a little more of it these days.
So in the immortal words of Blockbuster Video: Be kind and rewind it right back here to the Silver Beast Podcast for the next episode.
Alright, I’ll see you soon…take care!