A study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology in January 2008 shows that women benefit the most from living life with a laugh. Research involving 3,000 London based civil servants found that happy women may be at lower risk from heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure and obesity.

Happy men, however, benefited from just blood pressure and weight gain protection. Scientists from University College London took six samples of saliva from the men and women over a day and tested them for levels of cortisol, a hormone produced during times of stress and linked to high blood pressure, fat around the middle and lowered immunity. They found that men and women who reported being happiest had lower than average cortisol levels and so were less at risk of the dangers or exposure to high levels of this hormone.

 

On another day the team measured the volunteer’s levels of C reactive protein and interleukin 6, two proteins linked to an increased risk of heart disease and cancer. Among women but not men happiness correlated to lower levels of C-reactive protein and interleukin 6. Although previous research has suggested a link between low levels of cortisol and health and happiness this is the first to highlight the important of c-reactive protein and interleukin. The research also adds to the growing body of evidence suggesting that happiness is associated with biological responses that are health protective. 

 

(If you would like to have your levels of cortisol measured see the Adrenal Stress Test on the Resources Page). 

Walking briskly for at least half an hour a day could help women beat the anxiety and stress that often accompany symptoms of the menopause, according to a study published in Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention. That and a diet rich in foods such as soya and lentils could be just as effective as hormone replacement therapy, according to researchers who studied nearly 400 women in Philadelphia over eight years.

Another study whose results were released in January 2008 from Duke University Medical Study in North Carolina noticed that a brisk walk after lunch or supper every day for 30 minutes six days a week could also reduce the risk of developing blood sugar imbalances that can lead to heart disease, diabetes and stroke. And in a surprise discovery the researchers found that the regular walkers became healthier after eight months of being study than those who opted for a 15-20 minute jog four times a week. The health benefits were gained even when diets were kept exactly the same.

Drinking in moderation, eating five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, exercising regularly and quitting smoking are four healthy habits that could add up to 14 years to your life according to Scientists at Cambridge University who are the first to look at a combination of healthy habits. The 11 year study published in the journal PLoS Medicine followed the health of 20,000 men and women aged over 45 and revealed that those who followed these four health habits were four times less likely to die than those who did not.

The study revealed that smoking had a bigger impact on health than diet, exercise and alcohol intake. The longest lived did not smoke, had an active job or exercised regularly for at least half an hour, drank one or two glass of alcohol and ate at least five portions of fruit and vegetables. An accompanying editorial in the journal added that if everyone in the UK adopted these four behaviours the public health impact would be substantial.