health
March 9, 2026
Now we have proof: dealing with difficult people really does age you
Researchers have found evidence of what many of us always suspected: ‘hasslers’ shorten your lifespan. And they know by exactly how long
TL;DR
- Interacting with 'hasslers' can increase the pace of biological aging.
- Each hassler in a social network is linked to approximately 1.5% faster aging, equivalent to about nine months older biologically.
- Negative relationships are understood as chronic stressors that can speed up biological aging and physiological decline.
- Family members identified as hasslers show the strongest and most consistent links to accelerated aging.
- While positive relationships protect against age-related decline, negative ones appear to speed it up.
- The study highlights an association, not necessarily direct causation, between hasslers and aging rates.
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