According to a study published on LiveScience.com, perfectionists have a higher risk of premature death.
Though trying to be perfect can be beneficial to one’s health, the mental stress that perfectionists experience when things don’t go exactly as planned combined with a stubborn unwillingness to ask for help from others can cause health problems.
Trinity Western University psychology professor Prem Fry spoke to LiveScience.com and commented: "Perfectionism is a virtue to be extolled definitely. But beyond a certain threshold, it backfires and becomes an impediment."
Perfectionism exists in many forms but there are some areas where perfection is desired above all. Take an athlete, for example. An athlete has to follow a strict training regime in order to be in top form. Other people tend to aim for perfection in a more general sense.
Fry and her colleagues looked at the relationship between perfectionism and the risk of dying. They found study participants who had high perfectionism scores were 51% more likely to die young, compared to those who had lower scores.
Researchers theorize that high levels of anxiety and stress, common traits among perfectionists, help reduce their lifespan.