It’s Giving Tuesday. It can help you be healthier

As a reaction to the mass consumerism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday people around the world started Giving Tuesday. Last year it included 68 different countries. So we all know that giving helps other people, but can we actually help ourselves by giving?

There is a lot of research to indicate that there are health benefits, both psychological – which you’d expect – and physical, to giving. And giving includes giving a gift to someone else (thanks again to the person who left me a small gift on my desk this morning), donating your time, donating stuff, and donating money. So, what are some of these health benefits?

Lower blood pressure – Piferi and Lawler (2006) found that people who give social support had lower blood pressure overall than those who gave less social support. They also reported greater self-efficacy, greater self-esteem, less depression, and less stress.

Activates the…