Older Adults who Volunteer are Happier, Healthier

Senior citizens who volunteer are more healthy and happy than their peers, a new study has found.

Previous research has shown that old people who stay physically and mentally active have better quality of life. The latest study from the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest Health Sciences found that elders who stay active by volunteering get more than just an altruistic feeling.

"Our goal was to obtain a more comprehensive view of the current state of knowledge on the benefits of volunteering among older adults," said Dr. Anderson, a senior scientist with Baycrest's Rotman Research Institute and associate professor, University of Toronto. "We discovered a number of trends in the results that paint a compelling picture of volunteering as an important lifestyle component for maintaining health and wellbeing in later years."

For the study, the researchers looked at data from 73 studies published on the subject. The researchers found that people who volunteered had lower depression levels and had longer lifespan. Also, old people with chronic conditions are most likely to benefit from volunteering than others.

The team found that around 100 annual hours, or 2-3 hours per week of volunteer work is enough to boost seniors' health.

"Taken together, these results suggest that volunteering is associated with health improvements and increased physical activity - changes that one would expect to offer protection against a variety of health conditions," said Dr. Anderson in a news release.

Around 65 million people worldwide are expected to develop dementia by 2030. The researchers say that more studies are needed to investigate whether dietary or behavioural habits can reduce the risk of mental health problems in old people.

The study is published in the journal Psychological Bulletin.