More years, better people: age makes human beings more supportive and happy

Celebrating years makes us better. A study conducted in the United States reveals that people feel more satisfied with themselves and care more about their peers as they age. Although there are always exceptions, the truth is that the older we are, the more supportive, kind and empathetic we become. This overflow of humanity is related, it seems, to the production of a very fashionable hormone in the world of science and psychiatry, oxytocin. The human brain produces it in greater quantities as candles are blown out.

Is it our attitude towards life that makes us generate a greater production of oxytocin or is it the other way around? Is the production of ‘the hormone of happiness’ – as it has been baptized – what causes us to be better? Well, that is not yet known. “I wouldn’t know how to tell you,” says geriatrician Naiara Fernández, director of the Igurco healthcare network. «What has been demonstrated and corroborated by our experience is that dependent people are the majority in the group and increasingly dedicate their free time to participate in non-governmental organisations, patient associations or religious social action groups. That dedication, without a doubt, contributes to making them feel better and be happier”, the expert signs.

The work, published in the journal ‘Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience’ and reviewed by peers, as required by scientific rigor, is signed by Paul Zaj, from Claremont Graduate University, in USA, an internationally renowned expert on the subject. Satisfaction with one’s life is, says Zaj, closely related to the chemistry of our brains.

Philosophy warned

The study shows that the release of oxytocin increases with age and that, the scientists deduce, is because people care more about the social aspects that surround them as they age. “Our findings are consistent with most religions and philosophies in the world, which proclaim that one’s satisfaction with one’s life increases by helping others,” argues the main researcher, an expert in what has come to be called neuroeconomics. It is a new discipline that studies how the brain makes and processes economic decisions and how human values ​​influence it.

Oxytocin is a neurochemical, a hormone related to attachment, trust between people and generosity. Zak’s team wanted to see if there was a neurochemical basis for older people spending more time and spending more money on charities than younger people. «During youth we dedicate ourselves more to consumerism, personal satisfaction and work. We are more focused on paying the mortgage and raising the children. We are not capable of seeing beyond our own needs”, reflects Naiara Fernández.

The video of a child with cancer

The researchers recruited more than 100 people between the ages of 18 and 99, and each was shown a video about a young boy dealing with cancer. A blood sample was taken from all of them before and after the projection in order to measure the level of oxytocin that circulated through their veins at one time and another.

Volunteers also had the option of donating part of the money they were given as a bonus for participating in the study to a childhood cancer charity. “The invitation allowed us to measure immediate prosocial behavior,” Zak explained. The researchers also collected data on the emotional state of each participant in order to have individualized information on the general satisfaction with life of each one.

What happened? The expected. The most generous people, those who participate in voluntary and charitable organizations and those who are more likely to help others, released more oxytocin. And that measure was greater as we advanced in age. “This is the first time that it has been shown that there is a clear change in the production of oxytocin with past social behaviors”, which could indicate that, indeed, the brain generates more hormones of happiness the more love there is in our actions . Humanity makes us better.