While it has long been held that the good die young, American scientists confirmed Friday that being a bad person is good for your health.

The researchers at the University of Hirth discovered that bad people live longer – irrespective of diet, circumstance, racial groupings or nationality.

They found racists, liars, cheats, thieves, critics, televangelists and politicians tend to outlive the more decent members of our species.

Those who delighted in the pain of others were particularly well off - seeming to suffer lower blood pressure, less cancer and greater health in their old age.

The groundbreaking study in Applied Periodicals of Integrated Living was performed by researchers Frederick Olsen and Olivia Laws.

“This research has major implications for how we understand longevity” Laws said.

“It also has implications for the evolution of tribal groups – the member of a given tribe gains the practical mutual benefits a society grants you, while also gaining the stress relieving benefits of having people it is relatively safe to be mean to,” Olsen added.