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Church-goers Who Give Emotional Support to Others Live Longer, Says Study

Miranda Hitti/TN : Jun 25, 2006
WebMD

A new study published in the Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, shows that participants who reported giving emotional support to others in their church, had a lower risk for death than those who received such emotional support.

Praying together As reported on WebMD, church attendance has previously been linked to greater longevity, notes Neal Krause, PhD, a professor of health behavior and health education at the University of Michigan's School of Public Health.

The survey reportedly asked about emotional support given and received from other churchgoers, chronic financial strain, frequency of church attendance, private religious practices (praying and reading the Bible), and self-rated health.

The results, say reporter Miranda Hitti, "show lower risk of death for those who give emotional support to fellow churchgoers -- even after taking chronic financial strain into consideration."