Faith communities and health: what studies show
Social ConnectionKey points
- Attending services more than once a week: 33% lower mortality (Nurses’ Health Study).
- Possible mechanisms: support, meaning, less smoking and depression.
- Community is one of the nine Blue Zones habits.
- The data are observational; association does not mean faith "heals".
What the research shows
In the Nurses’ Health Study, researchers followed 74,534 women for 16 years. Those who attended religious services more than once a week had 33% lower all-cause mortality than those who never attended, with lower cardiovascular and cancer mortality. Depressive symptoms, smoking, social support and optimism explained part of the association (Li et al., 2016).
Strong social relationships are linked to longer life (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2010), and belonging to a faith community is one of the habits described in Blue Zones (Buettner & Skemp, 2016).
What may explain the link
- social support and regular contact;
- a sense of meaning and hope;
- healthier behaviors, such as less smoking;
- lower rates of depression.
Caveat
These are observational data. Healthier people may be more able to attend services, and findings are about community participation, not the truth or superiority of any belief.
Frequently asked questions
Does this apply to non-religious people?
The benefits likely come partly from community, support and purpose, which secular groups can also provide.
Does private prayer or spirituality show the same effect?
The strongest associations in the study were with attending services in person.
Sources
- Li et al. (2016). Association of Religious Service Attendance With Mortality Among Women. JAMA Internal Medicine 176(6):777. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2016.1615
- Holt-Lunstad et al. (2010). Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Review. PLoS Medicine 7(7):e1000316. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316
- Buettner et al. (2016). Blue Zones. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine 10(5):318-321. doi:10.1177/1559827616637066
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