Scientists Say Giving Is Good for Our Health: Here’s Why

Whether you’re donating during the holidays or volunteering at the local animal shelter, you’re also doing yourself a favor. Charity can improve your health, both mentally and physically. Research shows that giving to others can increase happiness, decrease stress, and increase your life expectancy. We’re here to back these facts with scientific research.

Giving can increase happiness.

Money won’t buy you happiness, but giving money to others might! A study by Harvard Business School professor Michael Norton found that giving money to others increased participants’ happiness more than spending it on themselves. Other researchers have found similar results. 

Another study by Jorge Moll at the National Institute of Health found that when people give to charity, it activates regions of the brain that are associated with pleasure. Not convinced? This study found that giving is also associated with the release of oxytocin in the brain, which activates feelings of euphoria.

The notion that giving increases happiness is nothing new—the term “helper’s high” was coined in the late 1980s, and the concept has been proven in numerous studies. “Helper’s high” is a feeling of “elation, exhilaration, increased energy, then a period of calm and serenity,” a published article by Larry Dossey, MD, claims. The “high” has been compared to a familiar feeling that follows after an intense workout. Some people also refer to this phenomenon as the “giver’s glow.”

Giving can decrease stress.

The American Institute of Stress reported that 77% of people experience stress that affects their physical health, and 73% of people endure the stress that impacts their mental health. Stress is linked to a plethora of health conditions, such as heart disease, chronic pain, insomnia, and even the common cold. 

One study’s findings indicate that engaging in “prosocial” behavior (or giving behavior) may be an effective strategy for reducing stress. Furthermore, this study revealed that giving support to others reduced sympathetic-related responses, like lowering blood pressure, for instance. This isn’t the only study that has shown the effects of giving on the basis of stress—a growing body of research claims giving to others can reduce stress and boost the immune system, resulting in an overall healthier life.

Giving can increase life expectancy.

Not only does giving to others result in a healthier life, but it can also result in a longer one.

Results of a study conducted by Dr. Michael J. Pulin revealed that helping others predicted reduced death rates, specifically in the association between death and stress. 

Furthermore, an earlier study found that elderly people who volunteered for multiple organizations were about 45% less likely to die over a five-year period than non-volunteers. According to an Edward Jones and Age Wave report, nearly 7 in 10 Americans want to live to 100; perhaps giving to others can increase these odds.

Lastly, a survey about the benefits of volunteering was conducted, where participants volunteered an average of two hours each week. The findings revealed that 68% of participants agreed that volunteering made them feel physically healthier. Additionally, 96% of participants acknowledged that volunteering made them happier. Further results demonstrated that the volunteers slept better, had less anxiety, and developed better relationships with others. 

It’s clear that giving to others can impact our physical and mental health in one way or another. So, when you give, you’re killing two birds with one stone—you’re improving the lives of others while you’re improving your own.