Study: Want to live longer? Attend live sports events

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Being a sports fan could actually help you live longer. That’s the findings of a new study done by researchers at Anglia Ruskin University.

“We found that people in the UK who attended a live sporting event in the last year are more satisfied with their lives, feel their lives are more worthwhile, and are less lonely than people who have not,” researchers said. “These findings chime with other studies, which found that people who watch sports in person at least once a year have fewer depressive symptoms than those who do not.”

The study also noted that people who watch sports experience greater well-being than those who don’t, and that this is probably linked to the social aspects of watching sport.

“By well-being, we mean a person’s psychological state,” researchers said. “How well someone feels. People with higher well-being tend to have better physical health and live longer than people with lower wellbeing.”

The researchers used data from 7,209 adults, aged 16-85, living in England, who participated in the “Taking Part Survey” commissioned by the UK government. The study also found that watching sports on TV and online can also be good for your well-being. The research showed that participants were reported less depressed than those who did not, and depressive symptoms were even less likely for those who watched sports with increasing frequency.

“All these findings are correlational, which means we can’t be certain which factor influences the other or whether they might both be influenced by another factor altogether (like wealth, or number of friends),” researchers noted. “However, social identity theory and brain imaging research tells us that watching sports could provide the primary wellbeing boost rather than other factors.”

The researchers concluded that the positive effect of watching sports is likely about social identity and feeling connected to others.