People active within a religious congregation are happier than people not affiliated with a religion.

A Pew Research Center study of people in 26 countries published on Thursday found that participating members of religious congregations report higher levels of happiness than people who are not part of a congregation, with people in Mexico reporting the highest levels of happiness.

Seventy-one percent of actively religious members in Mexico say they are very happy, compared to 61 percent of people who are not affiliated. This trend exists in almost all of the countries surveyed by Pew. However, in Ecuador , South Africa , Slovenia , Spain and Belarus , more unaffiliated people report being very happy.

In the United States , 36 percent of people active in religious congregations report being very happy, compared to 25 percent of unaffiliated people.

Religion is also tied to health, habits and civic engagement.

Among active members, 96 percent avoid drinking frequently and 85 percent do not smoke, while 90 percent of unaffiliated people avoid frequent drinking and 72 percent do not smoke. Active members of a congregation are also more likely to exercise several times a week and less likely to be obese. However, they are not more likely to have a healthy body mass index. Seventy-six percent of unaffiliated people have a BMI of less than 30, compared to 72 percent of active members.

Active members are more likely to be engaged within their community and more likely to vote. Sixty-nine percent always vote in national elections, compared to 48 percent of unaffiliated people — the same among Americans.

Additionally, 58 percent belong to at least one non-religious organization, compared to 39 percent of unaffiliated people. Religious New Zealanders are the most active, with 77 percent involved in non-religious organizations, compared to 63 percent of unaffiliated people.

In the U.S., 58 percent of those active in their religion are members of other organizations, compared to 39 percent of unaffiliated people.

