The Unhealthy Cynic
“Cynicism is humor in ill health”
–H.G. Wells
The Psychology Today article I discussed last week mentions that cynics are more likely to suffer form depression, which I find too personal a topic to provide any verification, as well as to engage in more dangerous activities, such as drinking and smoking, which are obviously harmful to one’s health. Upon further research, it seems that there is a strong correlation between heart disease and cynicism. A Mail Online article claims that scientists have found that cynics (defined as “those who have a natural skepticism about life) “have chemicals in their blood which causes inflammation,” ultimately causing high blood pressure and heart disease.
The three chemicals IL-6, C-reactive protein, and fibronigen indicate inflammation that may lead to atherosclerosis, the cardiovascular disease that occurs when fat builds up on the walls of blood vessels. Blood was sampled from a group of people, and two of three of these indicator chemicals were present in blood with those who were classified as cynical, whereas one chemical was present in those with depression disorders.
Now, I take heart disease very seriously, as three close family members have died from heart attacks at young ages, but of course, I’m skeptical of the research and its implications. A WedMD article discussing the relationship between heart disease and cynicism states, “Optimism appears to protect against heart disease and death.” It continues, “And women with the highest degree of hostility and cynicism were also more likely to die than those with the sunniest disposition.” Such claims may be the result of bad writing, but I can’t find myself to trust anyone who claims optimism will grant immortality. Are pessimists more likely to die than optimists? No, we’re all equally likely to die.
I’ve always strived to eat relatively well and exercise regularly, doing my best to avoid health problems. We’re all going to die eventually of course, whether it be in a matter of hours or decades, but obviously we, even the most cynical and melancholic of us, want to prolong death. When I read about the relationship between cynicism and depression, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was research on “treating” cynicism with medication. Many mental disorders are related to neurological chemical imbalances, and apparently so is cynicism. Apparently among polled people, young people in the western U.S. with a high education background and high income and who attend church tend to be more optimistic (Am I a cynic because I was born on the east coast?). Otherwise, I didn’t find anything legitimate, and I’m still convinced I was born a cynic, so I guess I’ll stick to concurrently exercising and viewing my water bottle as half empty. Maybe I’ll develop heart disease in my mid-40s, or maybe I’ll be hit by a CATA bus on my way to English class. Either way, I’m going to die at some point, so there’s that.
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With all of these scientific facts about a possible correlation between cynicism and heart disease, it made me wonder if there was any possibility that the two were not related, or that maybe one could be present without the other. Just because those chemicals were present doesn’t mean that the person can equate their cynicism to them. But if cynicism is in fact related to heart issues, then maybe we can likewise work backward with those who suffer from heart ailments, and see if they have any psychological similarities. But regardless, I do agree with your support of a healthy lifestyle, which can be beneficial to all of us, not just the cynically-prone. And maybe we will use medication or healthy lifestyles to “cure” cynicism, as you said, because at this rate I think dying from a heart-related issue is more likely than getting hit by one of those lovely CATA buses. 😉
It was a little worrying to read some of this stuff just because I don’t always have the most positive outlook. The science/biochemistry stuff sounds legitimate but I still think it’s kind of hard to classify a person as cynical or not; so obviously the experiment must have some error margin due to that. The point about high blood pressure definitely sounds true though; I know a lot of cynics with high blood pressure. When I first went through the post, I also felt like a lot of these symptoms could be related to people with high stress; people that are really stressed out can often be cynical but cynics aren’t necessarily always stressed out. While aspects of this post definitely did worry me, I really don’t think I’m going to be changing the way I live or think because I owe a lot my “success” in life to my cynicism.
This Psychology Today article makes a great amount of sense to me, actually. I take yoga and I read an article that linked stress and negative thoughts to many health related problems, including heart disease. I’m not saying that being cynical is related to a higher stress level, but I do believe that consistent negative and distrusting thoughts could have potentially terrible consequences for the body, especially the heart. I am not an expert, though, and I only have this information from what I have been taught in Yoga and Bi Sci 004. However, I agree with you that we are all going to die at some point. The wording of the one quote that you agree is “bad writing” hits a sour note with me. Women with high degrees of hostility and cynicism aren’t more likely to die than those with the sunniest dispositions. We are all equally likely to die, as you state. Instead, optimism simply correlates more to better health than cynicism. I like the way that you ended the post, though, as usual. You ended with a light, humorous tone which proves that being cynical isn’t as bad as everyone makes it out to be. Don’t get hit by a CATA bus on the way to English, though! CATA bus drivers are notoriously crazy.