Simple act can lower your risk of early death by 45% — you’ve probably already done it

It’s your civic duty — and maybe your fountain of youth.

While there’s already a body of research showing the health benefits of altruistic acts like volunteering, scientists wanted to see if there were any protective health outcomes associated with casting a ballot.

Published in the May Journals of Gerontology, a new study of older adults found that the simple act of voting in a political election lowered people’s risk of mortality by up to 15 years.

Specifically, the researchers analyzed health data tied to the 2008 presidential election. They looked at who voted and who didn’t to assess each person’s risk of dying over the next five, 10 and 15 years.

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