Smile a Cold Away!
Forget apples, being happy is the new “keeps the doctor away” miracle. What? Yup. According to this Article on LiveScience.com:
People who are happy, lively, calm or exhibit other positive emotions are less likely to catch colds and report fewer symptoms of the illness when they are under the weather.
The new finding held true regardless of personality traits such as optimism, extraversion and self-esteem. A person’s age, race, gender, education and body mass also did not make a difference.
Researchers interviewed 193 volunteers, aged 21 to 55, over several weeks to assess their moods and overall emotional states, and then infected them with either a rhinovirus, known to cause the common cold, or an influenza virus, responsible for the basic flu. The volunteers were then quarantined to see if they came down with a cold or the flu.
On the other hand, the study found that people who reported more negative emotions didn’t get sick more often than average.
Are you generally a positive, happy person? Or do you find yourself having more negative feelings?
Are the findings of this study true for you personally? Or is this pure Bolognium as far as you’re concerned?
Interesting Tidbit, Question for You, Science 
10 November 2006, 14:03
cold symptoms, first person, health, LiveScience, positive thinking remedies the cold, remedy for the common coldYou can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
That’s crazy! Although, believable. I get sick maybe once a year…and according to those who know me, I’m usually a happy person. I will have to pass this info on. Ha…I can hear myself announcing it to people who seem grumpy. I’m going to get myself beaten up…
lol! I’m the most happiest person on earth. And what do I have right now? A cold… ^^
@Brit
Haha, don’t get yourself beat up!
@Ginny
Haha, I have some kind of bug right now too, and I’m a generally perky person.
My take on the article was “If you think you’re feeling better, you’ll feel better”. Kind of a mind over matter thing.
It’s true when you’re happy and positive, your immune system is stronger. When you’re sad you let your immune system drop and you’re more able to get sick.
@Julie
Oh, is it a mind over matter thing or is it just a scientifically proven fact?
That’s an interesting study indeed
maybe being positive triggers a body ability which increases immunition? Come to think of it, since i’ve finished secondary school (less stress = more happiness) i haven’t been neither sick or if i was it it was always something minor… Amazing :O
Wow that’s pretty interesting. I’m usually negative but I only get sick once a year. Even if someone coughs on me…if I’ve already been sick, I wont get sick
@Afef:
Hmm, you know, that could be because you’re not around a bunch of snot-nosed kids that don’t wash their hands. Until college, it’s a germy world out there. Haha.
@Amy:
Haha, you’re lucky. When I was in a really negative phase of life a few years ago, I was constantly sick. Then again, that was in middle school. Hygiene isn’t a priority to middle school kids.
On the other hand, the study found that people who reported more negative emotions didn’t get sick more often than average.
wow i think i’m the minoraty who always gets sick when having negative emotiuons ….errr…but a good find
and nice layout.
Hmm…I don’t know if buy that study lol. I used to get sick all the time as a kid, with pnemonia, sinisitis and kidney infections and I doubt that was from me not smiling alot. I suppose emotions can play a part of certain illnesses (as in making yourself so stressed out that you become sick) but for the most part, I am not too sure if I can believe this article. It is definitely an interesting topic up for debate though.
I dunno if emotions can make you less sick but it also depends on the kind of sickness we are talking about.
I try to be a happy person but some days it just doesn’t work like that ya know. hehe
@Ben
Haha, same here. When I’m sad, I get sick and get miserable. Lucky me, huh? But I’m not sad much, so I guess it works out. And thank you! =)
@Kelly
Oh, gawsh, sounds like you weren’t having too much fun getting sick all the time as a kid.
I’m not sure I entirely buy it either, but it seems like a mind over matter thing to me. If you’re happy, you’re less sick, and if you’re sad, you’re gonna be miserable if you get sick.
@Kilanda
They were talking about colds and the flu. Basic, normal stuff that everyone gets.
Haha, oh yeah, I know what you’re talking about.
I’m usually a happy person, it takes a lot to make me upset or sad or anything. Hmm if that is true, what if I’m happy AND ate an apple? Haha. I rarely get sick (maybe once or twice a year if that) so the study somewhat applies to me