Economic Boost Increases Optimism, Health in the United States

According to the conclusions of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index (WBI), it would appear that Americans are happier now than they've been in months. The survey links this to the recent economic boost, as well as declining unemployment rates.

The paper suggests that, in addition to making citizens increase their standard of living, these improvements also contribute to making people feel better about themselves, experience higher levels of personal satisfaction, become more optimistic, and feel healthier.

Statisticians say that the WBI is a life evaluation index that also measures how much people anticipate the future, as well as whether they fear it or not. The latest survey put the WBI at 50.1, the highest score achieved since March 2011.

The study also revealed that the number of people who reported they were suffering in the current economic climate reached its lowest point since last January, at about 3.3 percent, LiveScience reports.

On the other hand, the number of those who reported better conditions and improved optimism about the future rose to 53.4 percent, the highest values in about eight months. The WBI team reports that the healthy behaviors index also increased from December 2011 to January 2012.

“We can see clearly from the WBI that as the economy and unemployment rates improve, so does the overall well-being of America,” explains the CEO and President of Healthways, Ben Leedle.

“January’s results are a step in the right direction and reiterate that we must focus the nation’s efforts and resources on the many areas of well-being to improve the overall health of all people, which will also improve productivity while lowering health care costs,” the expert goes on to say.

During the investigation, the experts also kept track of emotional health patterns, which are composites of daily experiences. It was determined that Americans experienced diminishing levels of worry, sadness and stress for the fifth month in a row.

The document highlights the necessity for federal authorities to continue their economic and financial reforms, with the sole goals of getting the US economy back on its feet again. To some extent, population satisfaction will follow.