When you think about all the benefits that result from living in a great neighborhood, chances are a healthy heart doesn’t come to mind.

However, a new study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health suggests that people who like the neighborhood they live in have a significantly lower chance of suffering a heart attack compared with those who have unfavorable views of their community.

Back in 2006, nearly fifty-three-hundred U.S. adults were asked how connected they felt to their neighborhood. The survey also asked if they thought their neighbors were friendly, helpful and trustworthy. Collectively, these thoughts and feelings were called “neighborhood social cohesion.”

The participants were all older than 50 and didn’t have any known heart problems. Two-thirds of them were women. Within the four years following the survey, 148 of the participants had a heart attack. That included 82 men and 66 women.

During the survey, researchers scored the participants’ thoughts and feelings on a seven-point scale. On that scale, each point increase in neighborhood social cohesion was associated with a 17 percent reduced risk of heart attack.

The researchers said this correlation held true even after adjusting for behavioral and sociodemographic factors, such as income and race. However, they caution readers that this is merely an observational study, meaning that no definitive conclusions can be drawn about cause and effect. Also, other factors, including family history of heart disease, were not known.

Despite that, perhaps this study might give you even more to think about when choosing your next abode. Apparently if you pick a great neighborhood, your heart might just be right at home.