Women with optimistic disposition may also have more healthy habits, researchers say.

Researchers found that women who were more optimistic were better able to follow healthy eating guidelines, reports Fox News.

The study used data collected as part of the Women's Health Initiative, a study of a national sample of postmenopausal women between the ages of 50 and 79.

The researchers from the University of Arizona in Tucson analyzed data from two groups of women: more than 13,500 who had been part of a program to improve their nutrition - mainly by decreasing fat intake - and another 20,000-plus who were not asked to make any changes to their diet.

The women's optimism levels had been evaluated with a questionnaire as part of the study. Another survey aimed to evaluate the overall healthfulness of participants' diets at the beginning of the study and one year later.

Researchers found that the most optimistic one third of the women saw the most improvement in their diets, whether or not they had completed the nutrition program.

"You can't tell someone who's a pessimist to be an optimist. Instead, look at the traits that make optimists successful," said Melanie Hingle, a dietician at the University of Arizona in Tucson. She led the new study, which was published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics..

One such skill is self-regulation, or being aware of one's behavior as it is unfolding. In the case of healthy eating, that includes monitoring eating habits, whether by making a mental note or keeping tabs in a journal.

Another strategy to successfully adopt a new habit is finding healthy ways to cope with unpleasant emotions and stress instead of, for example, eating junk food or smoking. 

"It's about finding a different activity to occupy that moment when you're feeling stressed, such as coping with breathing exercises, talking to a friend, going for a walk," Hingle said.

Optimistic people may also have better social support, whether as a cause or a result of their more-positive thinking. That's important because the support of friends and family can make it easier to get healthy.