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Time to be happy
Posted on Mon, 22 Nov 10

Time to be happy

Most people associate money with happiness however thinking about money frequently is likely to make you less happy by causing you to work more and spend less time with loved ones. To increase the richness of your life experience it is time, not money that should be your focus.

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Joyful laughter averts a broken heart
Posted on Fri, 22 Oct 10

Joyful laughter averts a broken heart

It is well known that negative emotions such as depression, anxiety and anger increase heart disease risk but little is known about the effect of positive emotional states. According to a new report joyful laughter is good for your heart.

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Pleasure and positivity are powerful medicine
Posted on Mon, 8 Mar 10

Pleasure and positivity are powerful medicine

Pleasurable emotions such as joy, happiness, excitement, enthusiasm, and contentment are associated with a lower risk from heart disease, the leading cause of premature death in the western world.

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Loneliness leaves women heartbroken
Posted on Mon, 8 Mar 10

Loneliness leaves women heartbroken

Compared to men, women may be particularly susceptible to the effects of poor quality relationships. Whereas men have a lower heart disease risk simply because they are in a relationship, the quality of the relationship is much more important to the health of women. Feelings of loneliness have an important effect on health and, interestingly, are not determined by the amount of social interactions but their quality.

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Dog owners enjoy a better life
Posted on Sun, 14 Feb 10

Dog owners enjoy a better life

As any dog owner knows, a dog is not only a friend but can help support new friendships through increased social interaction, such as talking to people when going for a walk together. Social support whether from a dog or human is important for health and wellbeing. As an example of just how important this effect may be a remarkable report found that patients with heart disease who owned a dog had a greater than 600% reduction in risk of dying (1).

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Giving is good for your health
Posted on Tue, 8 Dec 09

Giving is good for your health

Modern culture is heavily focused on the accrual of material wealth often at the expense of social wealth. It is well established that social relationships are an important determinant of health and wellbeing. Furthermore it may be that the act of giving, more than receiving, is important for health.

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