Positive Cardiology

The Science behind Positive Vibes

“Because happier hearts are healthier hearts, and vice versa.”™

-Yasmine S. Ali, MD

I was practicing lifestyle medicine long before it was even known as lifestyle medicine.

For over 30 years, I have been studying, practicing, and promoting heart health and preventive cardiology. And now, after all these years, my pioneering concept of Positive Cardiology is the natural evolution of this.

Positive Cardiology is the term I have coined to describe the application of principles of positive psychology, in combination with both the fundamentals and the nuances of preventive cardiology, to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD) and promote whole-person health and well-being, with the goal of healthy longevity: a life well lived, and well enjoyed, for as long as possible.

Extending the possible is the ultimate promise of positive cardiology.

Why is positive cardiology different?

Why is it more than just the usual, conventional, mainstream tenets of heart health?

Because while what you eat does matter—yes, of course it does—and while how much you move absolutely matters, beyond any doubt . . . what also matters, and what has been overlooked for far too long and far too often, is that how you think and how you socialize and how you sleep and how you manage stress and how you interact with others and with nature and the world around you—all of that matters, too. More than most of us realize.

And what may matter most of all, the key that may supersede all the others—and even make all the rest possible—is this:

How positively you view your life, your circumstances, and your future. In other words, how much of an optimist you are.

Because happier hearts are healthier hearts, and vice versa.™

Optimism, happiness, and health are inextricably intertwined. This is why optimists live longer than pessimists, in study after study.

(View my free webinar on the science and power of optimism for longevity, shown below.)

More and more research points to the importance of optimism, and the well-being of the entire person—inseparable from the well-being of the planet, in the end—in predicting healthy longevity.

Through my decades of studying heart health and whole-person well-being, certain key principles have stood out above the rest. My ORCHID Model for Positive Living™ encapsulates the alignment of these principles in six pillars:

Taken together, these principles—the pillars of the ORCHID Model—pave the path to a deeper, fuller, more meaningful, healthier life. A long life, well lived.

If you can engage with these principles in your own life, you, too, can experience the benefits of positive cardiology. You must care for your mind, body, and spirit. These principles (and their benefits) are integrated, not separated. Because you are a whole person, not a collection of organs, or floating thoughts, or random beliefs.

So, it’s about feeling energized, in good form, healthy . . . but it’s also about experiencing beauty, and meaning, and space to breathe. Making a difference, a contribution. Having a reason for being. Leaving a legacy. Enjoying both good health and good relationships.

Feeling satisfied. Living deeply and fully. Feeling self-fulfilled.

We want these things in our lives because we need these things to be fully actualized and whole as human beings—which, in an age of AI, has become more important than ever.

This is also why I think of medicine in the broadest possible sense, and encourage others to do so as well. Because, in truth, it is medicine that encompasses all of my work, and always has. Through the Positive Vibes e-magazine and podcast, through my speaking, through my hundreds of publications, and through my bestselling works of nonfiction as well as fiction, I explore the themes of health and optimism, science and history, creativity and culture, resilience and determination, nature and beauty, and the ideas and stories that help us understand—and transform—ourselves and the world around us.

Thus, you will find a wide range of topics throughout my work, and while the subjects may be diverse, they all belong to the same larger inquiry: how to think more deeply and see more clearly, experience more beauty and meaning, and live more fully to realize one’s true purpose and potential.

Keep on the Sunny Side

If you’d like to continue to learn more about positive cardiology and positive living, and to join me on this journey to live a more meaningful, more fulfilling, happier life—which, in turn, will improve our chances for healthy longevity . . . simply subscribe for free to my monthly Positive Vibes e-magazine (and get your free e-guide to positive living), and subscribe to my podcast, Positive Vibes: On the Sunny Side with Yasmine S. Ali, MD.

You’ll receive health insights that I’ve personally vetted, news of my latest publications and podcast episodes, inspiring interviews with extraordinary people who are working to make the world a more positive place, subscriber-only offers, and the earliest notifications of my new projects.