BBC News – Is the British banger dangerous?
This is a fun short article that will help you understand the differences between relative and absolute risk.
(I’ll have sausage and pep on my pizza please)
Lifestyle Underwriting
Thought For Today – 5/15/10
I know people have been asking about drinking and being diabetic, and it’s a very honest question,” he blogged. “Here is the honest answer, and this is the truth: when I say ‘party’ and ‘let’s have fun,’ I’m one of those guys that just likes to have a great time. I’m not a belligerent drunk. I don’t need to drink. … For a diabetic … it’s a double whammy because here’s what happens with alcohol: when you’re hung-over then you don’t eat right, you don’t take your insulin right. So it’s best to stay away. But, I pick and choose my times when I’m going to have fun.
Reality star and aging rocker Bret Michaels, just weeks before his cerebral hemorrhage.
Alcohol Comsumption Behavior in Large Groups
The Spread of Alcohol Consumption Behavior in a Large Social Network — Ann Intern Med
Conclusion: Network phenomena seem to influence alcohol consumption behavior. This has implications for clinical and public health interventions and further supports group-level interventions to reduce problematic drinking.
So…it’s your friends…
Sleep is Good
BBC News – Lack of sleep ‘linked to early death’
Getting less than six hours sleep a night can lead to an early grave, UK and Italian researchers have warned.
They said people regularly having such little sleep were 12% more likely to die over a 25-year period than those who got an “ideal” six to eight hours.
Stress Increases IHD Risk in Women
On-the-job pressure significantly increases the likelihood that women will develop ischemic heart disease, a large Danish study found.
Compared with women who felt their workplace pressure was suitable, those who reported that the pressure was much too high had a nearly 50% increased risk of developing ischemic heart disease (HR 1.47, 95% CI 1.14 to 1.88), according to Karen Allesøe, PhD, and colleagues from Glostrup University Hospital.
Unhealthy Behaviors
Koilonychia
Koilonychia are spoon shaped nails.
Lifestyle Underwriting – Update 4/27/10
The effect of combined health behaviors was strongest for other deaths and weakest for cancer mortality. Those with 4 compared with those with no poor health behaviors had an all-cause mortality risk equivalent to being 12 years older.
Energy Drinks + ETOH = Bad Combo
There is a link to the original study in PDF format within the AAFP article.
“Caffeine appears to reduce subjective perceptions of alcohol intoxication, but it does not ameliorate the performance deficits produced by alcohol,” said Thombs. “(Individuals) are more alert but just as behaviorally impaired as if they did not consume caffeine.”
Work as Paradox
The Job Satisfaction Paradox for the Self-Employed – BusinessWeek
How can the self-employed earn less money, work more hours, and experience more work-related stress than the wage employed—yet still report greater overall job satisfaction? The answer appears to be that people value highly the autonomy, flexibility, and opportunity to work in a small organization .
Many studies show that the desire to be one’s own boss is one of the leading motivators of self-employment. Others report flexible schedules are a key motivator of self-employment. Moreover, human beings have a preference for working in settings where they can interact with all the members of the organization, according to research by Bruno Frey and Matthias Benz of the Institute of Empirical Economics of the University of Zurich.
In short, the paradox isn’t such a paradox after all. People will work harder, earn less, and put up with more stress so that they can enjoy the freedom, flexibility, and work environment that self-employment provides.
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