Dr. Michael McKee, a psychologist at Cleveland Clinic, develops ways to enhance the inner healing response of patients.

"There are tremendous health benefits to giving," he said.

Stress leads to illness. But McKee says giving can reverse its deadly effects regardless of whether you give time or money, or if it's to a loved one or a complete stranger.

According to a University of California study and a separate University of Michigan study, older people who volunteered for two or more organizations were 44 percent less likely to die over a five-year period than those who didn't volunteer. That's even accounting for other factors, including exercise and smoking.

"We know that the giving tends to reduce blood pressure, slow heart rate," McKee said. "Again, giving reduces stress. It reduces depression."

Researchers from the National Institutes of Health studied MRIs of people who gave to various charities. They found generosity stimulates the reward center in the brain, releasing chemicals that strengthen our immune system.

"There's a release of endorphins," McKee explained. "These are the kinds of magical chemicals that come from various areas in the brain and they flood throughout the system." (Screengrab via CBN News)

"They're cousins, basically," he continued. "But some reduce pain, some seek out sick-looking cells and exert a healing effect on them. They have many different positive effects."

Dr. Stephen Deutsch is the chairman of psychiatry at the Eastern Virginia Medical School. He said doctors commonly use giving, in treating depression.

"We encourage people to not be so self-absorbed and to think about others," Deutsch said. "We even tell people to practice being concerned and invested in other people."

He said the more people give, the easier it gets.

"Sometimes they may feel initially that it's fraudulent, that it's not really who they are," Deutsch said. "But over time it becomes more and more comfortable for them, and it does have a powerful therapeutic effect."

So, people who feel powerless or worthless find a new purpose and value by seeing their actions help others, and they tend to live longer and healthier lives.

To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE

Trump Celebrates 'Wonderful' Children With Down Syndrome: 'You Are Amazing'

ICYMI: Governor Abbott Signs Law Banning Sharia Compounds in Texas

Rubio Deports Suspected Muslim Brotherhood Leader

FBI's Big Sweep - 'We Rescued Thousands of Children': Five Days, Numerous Cities and One Big Bite Out of Crime

Mystery Billionaire Who Donated $130M to Pay Our Troops During Shutdown Has Been Identified

Largest Federal Workers Union Calls for an End to the Shutdown, Putting Pressure on Democrats

Egypt Joins Search for 13 Hostage Bodies, Including 2 Americans; Trump Issues Ultimatum

Prayer Alert: Hurricane Melissa Nears Jamaica as Category 5

Peace President Trump Signs Thailand-Cambodia Peace Deal He Helped Broker during Stop in Malaysia

'This Is a Historic First': Conservative Influencer Benny Johnson Says Trump Changed Charlie Kirk's Award to Include a Cross

White House Ballroom Construction: Presidents Have Made Changes for Decades

Judge Rules against Trump Admin Effort to Purge 'Woke' Books from Military Schools

Wow! Deadly Illegal Alien Truck Driver Failed CDL Test 10 Times

Trump: Tech Leaders, Mayor Persuaded Me to Hold Off Federal Force in San Francisco

FBI Director Kash Patel: We're 'On the Verge' of Exposing Antifa's Funding Network

Inflation Eases in September, Below Analysts' Expectations; But Shutdown Needs to End

Cultural Transformation Is Happening in America among the Youth

Stunning Archaeological Discovery That Offered Powerful Biblical Proof: Inside the Dead Sea Scrolls

Biblical Tax Notice: 1st-ever Assyrian Inscription Found Near Jerusalem's Temple Mount

'A Genocide Is Happening': 35 Christian Leaders Urge Trump to Declare Nigeria a CPC