Volunteering Makes Elderly People Happy

Elderly people who volunteer are happier and healthier, a new study shows.

Researchers at the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest Health Sciences found that volunteering is associated with reductions in symptoms of depression, better overall health, fewer functional limitations and greater longevity.

For the study, the researchers reviewed 73 studies published over the last 45 years involving adults aged 50-plus who were in formal volunteering roles.

"We discovered a number of trends in the results that paint a compelling picture of volunteering as an important lifestyle component for maintaining health and well-being in later years," lead study author Nicole Anderson from the University of Toronto in Canada said in a press release.

The team explained that feeling appreciated or needed as a volunteer strengthen the relationship between volunteering and psycho-social well-being. Older people with chronic health conditions might be most benefited from volunteering.

But, researchers say health benefits depend on a moderate level of volunteering. They advice about 100 annual hours, or two to three hours per week.

"Taken together, these results suggest that volunteering is associated with health improvements and increased physical activity - changes that one would expect to offer protection against a variety of health conditions," Anderson added.

"We encourage investigators to include more objective measures of cognitive functioning in future studies. Particularly interesting would be the inclusion of a more comprehensive battery of neuropsychological tests, so that the association of volunteering with the risks of various forms of dementia and its precursor, mild cognitive impairment, could be ascertained," the report stated.

The study appeared online in the journal Psychological Bulletin.