Researchers have finally confirmed what we've suspected for years - girls' nights and catch-ups with friends are vital for your health and wellbeing.
Scholar William Chopik, from Michigan State University, conducted two studies involving nearly 280,000 people and discovered that friendships become even more important to health and happiness as we get older.
"Friendships become even more important as we age," the associate professor of psychology, Chopik said.
"Keeping a few really good friends around can make a world of difference for our health and well-being.
"So, it's smart to invest in the friendships that make you happiest."
In his first study, Chopik examined survey information about relationships from 271,053 participants of all ages, from nearly 100 countries. It showed overall health and happiness was linked to relationships with both family and friends, but only friendships became a stronger indicator of health and happiness, as you grew older.
In the second study, he analysed a separate survey about relationships and chronic disease from 7,481 older people in the US. It revealed that when friends were a source of strain, participants reported more chronic illnesses and when friends showed support, participants were happier.
While he said family relationships were often enjoyable too, they sometimes involved negative and monotonous interactions. And as you can choose to keep friends in your life that bring you joy rather than negativity, it's these friendships that help boost your happiness.
"There are now a few studies starting to show just how important friendships can be for older adults," he told Science Daily.
"Summaries of these studies show that friendships predict day-to-day happiness more and ultimately how long we'll live, more so than spousal and family relationships," he said.
He said it was strange that friendships often took a "back seat" as we aged and we had families of our own, because maintaining friendships was so important for our overall happiness.
"Friendships help us stave off loneliness but are often harder to maintain across the lifespan," he said.
"If a friendship has survived the test of time, you know it must be a good one – a person you turn to for help and advice often and a person you wanted in your life."
And as you grow older, friends can also provide support for people without partners, or those without family to lean on, and let's not forget friends can also help reintroduce you to having a social life after having children.