7 shocking things that shorten your life span
RealBuzz – Mon, Dec 17, 2012
No sense of humor
You know how people always say “laughter is the best medicine?”
Turns out they’re telling the truth. A study carried out by Sven Svebak
at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, which covered
54,000 subjects, found that people with a high capacity for humor were
35 per cent more likely to be live longer than people who ranked at the
bottom of the humor scale. If you are planning to go through life
keeping laughter to a minimum, you’ll be missing out on health benefits
such as stress reduction, immune system improvement, and increased blood
flow, which could reduce your life expectancy when compared to your
chuckling peers.
Flying
It’s been proven that taking regular holidays is a stress busting
health booster, but it seems the way we travel to those holidays isn’t
quite as healthy. In fact, flying can be downright bad for you. It’s
already been proven by the Association of Flight Attendants that people
who have careers in the aviation industry are more at risk of dying from
cancer, and now it’s become apparent why. According to physicist Robert
Parish, when you reach the average cruising altitude of 39,000 feet in a
plane you are subject to 64 times more radiation than at sea level due
to cosmic rays, which over time can seriously affect your wellbeing.
Nasty co-workers
You know that person who you can’t stand at work? As if things
weren’t bad enough already, they’re actually shortening your lifespan.
Researchers at Tel Aviv University found that a person’s colleagues have
a significant bearing on their wellbeing, with friendly and supportive
co-workers leading to lowered stress levels and a reduction in blood
pressure and cholesterol. People at work who cause arguments and don’t
share the workload equally have the opposite effect, causing stress and
subsequently a higher risk of dying amongst their colleagues. These
negative effects were most obvious in subjects between the ages of 38
and 43, so if you fall into that bracket it might be time to bury the
hatchet with your work enemies.
Retiring
Retiring is often the light at the end of the tunnel for stressed
workers, especially for those who have saved all of their life so that
they can do it earlier. Sadly, that lifetime of financial sacrifice is
leading to a shorter lifespan according to research carried out by Shell
Health Services. The study discovered that people who retire at 55 on
average died younger than those who waited until they were 65. John
Rother, chief lobbyist of the American Association of Retired Persons,
explained it rather bluntly by saying “you use it or you lose it” – by
retiring early, your body misses out on its daily dose of activity and
you gradually become more unhealthy.
Not drinking alcohol
We’re always told to cut back on how much alcohol we drink, and
rightly so – excessive alcohol consumption can severely damage your
health. However, go to the opposite end of the drinking spectrum and you
could be in even more trouble than heavy drinkers. A study at the
University of Texas found that non-drinkers have a lower life expectancy
than people who drink a moderate amount, and in some cases even lower
than heavy drinkers. This is partly due to missing out on the health
benefits associated with alcohol. Alcohol (in sensible amounts) helps to
protect against heart disease, and decreases the likelihood of
Alzheimer’s and dementia through improved neuron function in the brain.
Sleeping too much
Getting enough sleep is important when it comes to good health, so
surely the more shut-eye you get the better, right? Wrong. Consistently
going too far over the recommended eight hours can negatively affect
your health according to a study conducted by RealAge.com. The findings
showed that participants who slept for more than nine and a half hours a
night suffered from a staggering 60 per cent increase in heart disease,
and a higher mortality rate when compared to people who stick to the
recommended amount. As well as heart disease, over-sleeping has also
been linked with a whole host of health issues, including obesity,
diabetes, headaches and depression.
Not having sex
Sex is good for you. Is anyone still here? For those of you who
haven’t frantically run off to tell a significant other the good news,
we’ll explain why. The
British Medical Journal conducted a sex
survey and found that men who didn’t have sex at least once a month
experienced twice the mortality rate of those who were getting lucky
once a week. It’s not hard to see why this is the case – having sex
burns kilojoules, lowers blood pressure, boosts the immune system, and
much, much more. A study at Duke University also backed this up, finding
that women who had enjoyable sex lives lived eight years longer than
those who didn't
