Saturday 25 December 2010

Must read.. especially for the middle aged guys & girls.. ;-) Age and happiness: The U-bend of life | The Economist

Age and happiness: The U-bend of life | The Economist:

Must read.. especially for the middle aged guys & girls.. ;-)

"Whatever the causes of the U-bend, it has consequences beyond the emotional. Happiness doesn’t just make people happy—it also makes them healthier. John Weinman, professor of psychiatry at King’s College London, monitored the stress levels of a group of volunteers and then inflicted small wounds on them. The wounds of the least stressed healed twice as fast as those of the most stressed. At Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Sheldon Cohen infected people with cold and flu viruses. He found that happier types were less likely to catch the virus, and showed fewer symptoms of illness when they did. So although old people tend to be less healthy than younger ones, their cheerfulness may help counteract their crumbliness."

No comments: