Globetrotters will be happy to hear that they now have the perfect excuse to continue buying those plane tickets: traveling is actually good for your health!
According to a new study recently published by researchers at Australia’s Edith Cowan University, travel can keep you young! Sure, while some aspects of traveling may seem like they’re taking a few years off our lives–think: packing, trying to plan the perfect itinerary, and don’t even get us started on maneuvering through the airport–the positive experiences associated with trips can actually delay the aging process, adding some years onto your life rather than shaving them off.
Science Daily published the study earlier this month, which applied the theory of entropy–the general trend of the universe toward death and disorder–to tourism. What they found was that traveling helps to mitigate the human body’s entropy, or gradual decline, by modulating its four major systems.
Fangli Hu, the study’s principal researcher, stated, “Tourism isn’t just about leisure and recreation. It also plays an important role in individual health and public health.”
Researches noted that many lifestyle practices accepted by medical and mental health experts go hand-in-hand with travel, including social interaction, exposure to novel environments such as nature, walking or other physical activities, and nutritious meals (specifically the Mediterranean diet), all of which slow the aging process.
Hu explained:
Put simply, the self-defense system becomes more resilient. Hormones conducive to tissue repair and regeneration may be released…Leisurely travel activities might help alleviate chronic stress [and] dampen overactivation of the immune system…Engaging in recreation potentially releases tension and fatigue in the muscles and joints. This relief helps maintain the body’s metabolic balance and increases the anti-wear-and-tear system’s effectiveness.
On the flip side, the study points out that tourists could also face negative side effects of travel, such as “infectious diseases, accidents, injuries, violence, water and food safety issues, and concerns related to inappropriate tourism engagement.” Therefore, travelers are always encouraged to try their hardest to avoid triggers that could lead to these negative effects.
There is a caveat to traveling often, however: it can definitely get pricey. So when it comes time to booking your next trip be sure to check out our guide on how to find cheap flights to travel on a budget.