Stop that excessive worrying, and you just might lengthen your life. That's what a study led by a Purdue University researcher found in evaluating data on personality change and mortality in 1,663 men ages 43 to 91. During 18 years of follow-up, men who became increasingly neurotic had a much higher risk of dying than those who stayed the same or became less neurotic. The good news, says Robert S. Wilson, professor of neuropsychology at Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center in Chicago, is that change-learning to cope and overcoming the tendency to stew over things-"seems to make a difference, and that's pretty exciting." The study was published in May's Psychological Science.
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Not-So-Daffy DaffodilsThe fields of daffodils that bloom every spring in the Black Mountains of Wales are not only beautiful-they may help fight Alzheimer's disease, too. A compound, known as galantamine, that is extracted from daffodils and other plants is used in high-end prescription drugs to slow the development of dementia. Scientists found that Welsh daffodils appear to be especially prolific producers of galantamine. Trevor Walker, a biochemist with the research firm Alzeim, in Powys, Wales, told the BBC that he hopes to produce a less costly generic version of the compound.
Alzheimer’s: Difficulty identifying common smells such as lemon, banana and cinnamon may be the first sign of Alzheimer's disease
PET VACCINES: American Animal Hospital Association's newly updated canine vaccination guidelines at aahanet.org, Jean Dodds of Hemopet in Garden Grove, Calif., and Ronald Schultz at University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine in Madison, who incidentally helped formulate the American Animal Hospital Association's guidelines. Dodds has lectured endlessly on adverse reactions associated with the rabies vaccine. They include autoimmune diseases of the thyroid, joints, blood, eyes, skin, kidney, liver, bowel and central nervous system; anaphylactic shock; aggression; seizures; epilepsy; and fibrosarcomas at injection sites, especially in cats. For his part, Schultz has performed serological studies that documented rabies antibody titer counts at levels known to confer immunity seven years after vaccination. Rabies Challenge Fund needs more donations: Looming on the horizon each year is a $150,000 annual budget that must still be met. The Rabies Challenge Fund is as grass roots as you can get. Individuals can and do make a difference. Send donations to The Rabies Challenge fund at Rabies Challenge Fund, c/o Hemopet, 11330 Markon Drive, Garden Grove, CA 92841. For more information on The Rabies Challenge Fund, visit RabiesChallengeFund.org.
EXERCISE: workouts needed to last more than half an hour to improve HDL cholesterol.
SOURCES: Kodama, S. Archives of Internal Medicine, May 28, 2007; vol 167: pp 999-1008. News release, JAMA/Archives.
The four leading causes of death in the U.S. -- cardiovascular disease, stroke, cancer, and lung disease -- are all strongly linked to cigarette smoke exposure. One out of every five deaths in the U.S. can be attributed to smoking. . . Within 20 minutes of snuffing out your last cigarette, your blood pressure and heart rate decline.