Spirituality encompasses that which cannot be seen. That which is felt and understood, but only tangible in symbols, metaphors and signs. For religious people, spirituality revolves around their version of God. For spiritualists, it could mean some higher power talked about as The Universe. For atheists, it might just be feelings and emotions explained by chemical reactions in the brain. Whatever spirituality is to you... there is no denying that your mental state and your seek for purpose in life impacts your overall well-being.

It has been proven in the scientific literature that depression leads to obesity and metabolic disturbances. Anxiety and stress leads to high blood pressure and heart disease. We even have a medical term for when people develop heart failure from a broken heart, called Takotsubo (or Stress-Induced) Cardiomyopathy. There have been numerous studies proving that prayer improves outcomes in critically ill patients in the hospital.

Whatever world view you subscribe to, there is no denying that spirituality and the state of the psyche impacts the development of disease and quality of life.