"The stress of living a double life affects sleep, increases anxiety and impacts overall well-being," she says. She points to a maxim: " 'You're as sick as the secret.' "¦ In working with married couples, the lying reflects the illness in the relationship. When the truth is unveiled, after the crash, there's almost a sense of relief.
Winchester-Vega points to an affair as a classic example. And co-factors, such as bipolar disorder or hidden addictions, can also contribute to dishonesty. There might be a need to enhance stories to build themselves up in front of their peers. Winchester-Vega says people lie for a variety of reasons, such as to be the center of attention, to one-up and impress, especially for those with low self-esteem. Still others evaded telling lies by responding to a difficult question with another question to distract the person calling them on the carpet. Some said they realized they could simply tell the truth about accomplishments rather than exaggerate others said they stopped making false excuses for being late or failing to finish tasks. In weeks when participants told fewer lies, they also reported that their close personal relationships had improved and that their social interactions overall had gone more smoothly.Īt the end of the study, Kelly said, members of the no-lie group were asked to tell how they managed to be less deceptive. When people in the control group told three fewer minor lies, they reported two fewer mental health complaints and one less physical complaint. When people in that group told three fewer white lies than they did in other weeks, they experienced about four fewer mental-health complaints, such as feeling tense or melancholy, and about three fewer physical complaints, such as sore throats and headaches. Kelly's study found the link between less lying and improved health was significantly stronger in the no-lie group. Michele Winchester-Vega, a psychiatric social worker and founder of Michele Winchester-Vega and Associates in New Windsor. "Transparent living is healthier "¦ a good life versus a convoluted or dark life," agrees Dr. The research suggests that lying often enough and long enough could cause damage to the heart and arteries. "We found that the participants could purposefully and dramatically reduce their everyday lies, and that, in turn, was associated with significantly improved health," Anita Kelly, the psychology professor who led the study, said in a statement after presenting her findings to the American Psychological Association in late August.įibbing releases stress hormones that can increase heart rate, blood pressure and respiration.
Both groups went to a lab each week to fill out health and relationship surveys, as well as to take a polygraph test. Half were instructed to stop telling major and minor lies during the test the other half was given no special instructions. Researchers at the University of Notre Dame carried out a 10-week honesty experiment with 110 people. Lies are the subject of rhymes: Liar, liar pants on fire, for instance.Īnd some would argue that lies are almost necessary: "Honey, does this dress make me look fat?"īut it's only recently that lies have been looked at in the context of health. Remember Pinocchio or George Washington and the cherry tree? Lies are the subject of tales themselves.
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