"We tested the hypothesis that providing help to others would predict a reduced association between stress and mortality for the helpers," Poulin said, according to a Buffalo statement.
"Specifically, over the five years of the study, we found that when dealing with stressful situations, those who had helped others during the previous year were less likely to die than those who had not helped others," he said.
Self-reported stressful experiences included such things as serious, non-life-threatening illness, burglary, job loss, financial difficulties or death of a family member.
