Smile Your Way To A Long Life

By Suparna Chakaraborthy

Thursday, April 15, 2010, 13:34

We all know laughing is good for health, but did you know grinning is good for your age? Researchers have claimed that the wider you grin and the deeper your laughter lines are, the more likely you are to live longer. broader smiles and wrinkles around eyes point to a positive outlook on life, implying better long-term health.

To prove this researchers have undertaken the study of 230 pictures of major league baseball players printed in the 1952 baseball register. Each picture came with a listing of the player's vital statistics, including age, weight, height and marital status.

The next step was to rank the players according to their smiles and laughter lines, spanning from none at all, to partial and then those with a full blown toothy grin and crinkled eyes.

The lifespan of each player was them measured. The result was, those in the "no smile" section lived an average of 72.9 years while the players in the "partial smile" group lived to around the age of 75.

The ones with the widest grins lived an average of 79.9 years. The difference of full seven more years. So, grin wider and add on more years to healthy living.