The Benefits of Kindness

We could give you about a million reasons why being kind is beneficial to others. But have you ever wondered about the personal benefits to being kind? We’re not just talking about the tax benefits you get from giving charity or the favor you’re owed after doing your friend a solid – although both of those outcomes are in your favor. But, as it turns out, kindness can have positive physical side effects too. And while we’re not saying that kindness should be done for personal gain, there’s no reason to ignore the fact that you will gain.

Kindness Makes Us Happy

Our brains have a chemical response to being kind. When we do nice things for others, our brains release ‘feel good’ endorphins that lift our spirits and improve our moods.  One reason found for this is the sense of community that is established when we do good for others. As community has been found to be one of the key contributors to a long life, it turns out that being kind can actually lengthen your life.

Kindness Reduces Pain

It sounds crazy to think that being kind can really have such an extreme physical effect, but studies have found this to be just the case. Researchers found that the parts of the brain that react to pain are deactivated by the experience of giving, leaving individuals who gave charity with a much larger threshold for pain.

Kindness Makes Us Healthier

Whether it be a stronger heart or just better overall health, kindness has been linked to health on multiple occasions. Studies have found that the release of oxytocin in the brain is particularly notable given the hormones significance in the cardiovascular system. This hormone can lower blood pressure, lower inflammation and even slow down aging.

Kindness Keeps Us Bonded

One of the key elements to a successful relationship is giving. As it turns out, when we give to other people, we are creating a bond with them. This bond is what allows us to feel close to others and is a huge factor in forming new relationships. This type of bonding dates back thousands of years and has been argued to be so ingrained in us that it is actually a part of our genetic makeup.

Let’s Sum Up

Kindness is one of the leading factors in community, and community is directly connected to longevity. It turns out that being kind is more than just something we do because we care, it is something we do because we crave. We crave relationships, we crave love and we crave long, happy lives. Humans are built to live with community, so humans are built to be kind. With our 24k for 24k campaign well on its way, we are slowly uncovering the benefits of kindness. Help us reach our goal of 24,000 acts of kindness in memory of the 24,000 students of Rabbi Akiva and discover what other benefits small acts chesed could give to you.

Sources:

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/kindness-benefits_b_869537

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/02/17/health/kindness-health-benefits-wellness/index.html