Using Art and Culture to Improve and Lengthen Your Life

We recently saw an article how Engaging with the Arts May Help You Live Longer.  It was centered on a research study from University College London. The study focused on people over the age of 50 who were involved in some cultural format. It could be painting, going to a museum, going to a concert, or watching dance, etc.  The study followed individuals for 14 years and found out that if you regularly included arts activities in you life, you were 31 percent less likely to die than individuals who had no art or culture in their lives.  Pretty impressive.

We live in New York City, where a museum, a concert hall, art gallery, and universities are easy to access.  That is one of the reasons we continue to live in the Big Apple.  It is a cultural smorgasbord.  We witness a tremendous number of people over the age of 50 enjoying what the city has to offer.  The experience is often enhanced by meeting friends at cultural events and continuing discussing what you experienced long after the event occurred.

If you live a distance from a cultural venue, today you can enjoy it virtually.  People all over the world watch performances in HD from the Metropolitan Opera.  YouTube has videos of all kinds of cultural experiences.  Invite friend over to watch with you. Make a night of it or day of it.

It is not just extending life that is important. It is making the time we have enjoyable, nourishing, and giving us wonderful things to contemplate in a world that is less than perfect.  So if you want quality time, not just quantity, go online and look up the cultural events in your area. Then start going!