Radio personality Don Imus revealed Monday that he has stage 2 prostate cancer. He announced the news on his syndicated radio show "Imus in the Morning" and went on to say that he is confident he can beat the disease with help from his doctors.

The 68 year old Imus also stated that he thought his cancer may be related to stress, perhaps an allusion to his firing from CBS radio in 2007 over comments he made about the Rutgers women’s basketball team. A doctor for the American Cancer Society reacted by saying that while studies show that a person’s ability to fight cancer is impacted by stress, there are no studies demonstrating that stress has a role in actually causing cancer.

Stage 2 prostate cancer is defined as cancer that has spread through the prostate but not outside of it. It has a relatively good cure rate with proper treatment. Almost 99 percent of men whose prostate cancer is diagnosed in stage 2 live for 5 years, while between 65 and 90 percent survive 10 years beyond their diagnosis. Treatment for stage 2 prostate cancer ranges from "watching and waiting" to removal of the prostate along with radiation therapy.

For more information about prostate cancer, join the Healia Support Group for Prostate Cancer.

_{Photo: williacw, Flickr, Creative Commons}

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh reported yesterday that optimists, people who tend to look at the bright side of things, live longer healthier lives than their pessimistic counterparts. While this is good news for those with sunny dispositions, on the flip side, pessimists have just found another reason to be negative.

The study examined data from the more than 100,000 participants aged 50 and older enrolled in the Women’s Health Initiative that began in 1994. As part of this large initiative, women were asked to fill out a questionnaire measuring their tendency toward optimism or pessimism, which included questions such as: "In uncertain times, I expect the worst." Eight years into the study, optimistic women were 14% more likely to be alive than pessimistic women and they were 30 percent less likely to die from heart disease, the leading cause of death for women (and men) in America. The optimists were also less likely to suffer from high blood pressure, diabetes, or to smoke cigarettes.

A subset of women rated as being highly mistrustful of other people (called the "cynically hostile" group by the researchers) were 16 percent more likely to die from any cause and 23 percent more likely to die from cancer, than women who were more trusting.

While previous studies have demonstrated a relationship between optimism and longevity, most of them have been small studies involving only men. The present study not only examined data from thousands of female participants, it also went to great lengths to control for other factors that might explain the results such as physical activity levels, smoking, and blood pressure. Thus, the relationship between optimism and living longer found in the study is independent of these factors.

So how could optimism be responsible for extending life? That is unclear but the researchers propose that it may have to do with stress management capabilities. Optimistic people tend to have more friends and a larger social network to help them deal with crises, and they may also be better able to cope with stress on their own. Difficulty dealing with stress is a risk factor that has been associated with high blood pressure, heart disease, and early death in previous studies. Optimists may actually have a different physiological response to stress that reduces its toll on the body.

However, the researchers also point out that while the present study demonstrates a relationship between optimism and longevity, it does not prove that optimism actually causes extended life. More research needs to be done to better understand the relationship between the two factors. For the optimists among us, the cup appears half full already.

For more information about managing stress in uncertain times, see the Healia Health Guide to Stress Management or share your thoughts in the Healia Health Community for Stress Management.

_{Photo: viZZZual.com, Flickr, Creative Commons}

Results of a poll released today show that one-third of Americans are losing sleep over the world economic crisis and other personal financial concerns. Chronic lack of sleep is associated with unhealthy lifestyles, poor job performance, and impaired judgment, and can negatively impact health.

The National Sleep Foundation’s Sleep in America poll surveyed 1,000 American near the end of last year about their recent sleep habits. Sixteen percent of those polled said they are losing sleep because of financial concerns, 15 percent reported losing sleep because of the state of the U.S. economy, and another 10 percent said job worries are keeping them awake.

The results also showed that in the past eight years, the number of Americans who sleep less than six hours a night jumped from 13 percent to 20 percent, and the number who reported sleeping eight hours or more dropped from 38 percent to 28 percent. Overall, the number of people reporting sleep problems has increased 13% since 2001.

According to the NSF, people who do not get enough sleep have more trouble working efficiently, which may compound stress they have about their job. Getting less sleep also makes it more difficult to exercise and eat healthy, leading to further health risks from an unhealthy lifestyle. Less sleep also makes you more than twice as likely to eat foods high in sugar and carbohydrates and to smoke cigarettes or use other types of tobacco. Not getting enough sleep may also impact leisure time, with many people reporting more difficulty having sex and engaging in their usual leisure activities, according to the NSF.

The NSF also says that lack of sleep not only endangers your health but can put you at greater risk of suffering a serious accident, such as falling asleep while driving. According to the poll, more than one-half of adults (54 percent) have driven when drowsy at least once in the past year and nearly one-third of drivers polled (28 percent) say that they have nodded off or fallen asleep while driving a vehicle.

The NSF suggests that doctors should always ask their patients about how they are sleeping in addition to the routine questions about diet and physical activity.

If you are having difficulty sleeping, you may be able to improve your sleep by practicing better "sleep hygiene." This requires you to follow a set of rules that help keep your sleeping routine regimented, including going to bed and waking up at the same time every day, avoiding naps, and using the bed for sleep and sex only (not watching TV, reading, or doing work). If you are having trouble sleeping due to your worries about the economy, talk to your doctor about ways you can improve your sleep.

For more information on good sleep hygiene and other sleep issues, read the Healia Health Guide to Excessive Sleepiness. For ways to help you deal with the stress of tough economic times, see the Healia Health Guide to Stress Management. If you want to share your own experience battling sleep problems, join the Healia Health Community for Sleep Disorders.

The economy is in decline; your house is worth less than you paid for it, you may be losing your job, that pile of bills just seems to be getting higher – and your anxiety and stress levels seem to be rising as fast as the stock markets fall. While your economic situation may not be as dire as this scenario, odds are that your financial situation is worse now than it was a year ago. With failing banks and massive layoffs leading the news daily, it can be difficult to escape the sense of impending doom.

It is perfectly normal to feel anxious or stressed out during times like these. In fact, it would be unusual to be unconcerned when events beyond your control are impacting your family’s financial future. According to the American Psychological Association, two-thirds of adults admit that the economy contributes significantly to their stress. But if you find that you are consumed by worry about your finances to the exclusion of anything else, or you are having difficulty sleeping due to your worry, you may be experiencing anxiety, also known as Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD).

People with GAD tend to have fears about terrible things happening to themselves or their loved ones even though they realize their fears are irrational. The American Psychiatric Association defines GAD in part as the presence of persistent, excessive, and unrealistic worries about issues such as money, health, family, or work that last six months or longer. GAD can be accompanied by physical symptoms including fatigue, restlessness, difficulty sleeping, irritability, and others.

Whether your worries about the economy have risen to the level where they are interfering with your everyday life, or you just need some relief from the stress caused by uncertain economic times, the following tips provided by the Anxiety Disorders Association of America can help:

• Take a break from bad news. It is hard to turn on the TV without hearing some negative news about the economy. Take a break from all the bad news by turning off the TV, avoiding the radio, and staying away from internet news sites for awhile. Some people can feel their anxiety and stress level rising when they are exposed to bad news; if this sounds familiar, try taking a walk or listening to some music to get your mind off of the situation.
  
  
• Make a plan. Come up with a plan of action for how to adapt to the changing financial conditions. This could include measures such as postponing a planned vacation or home renovation, increasing revenue by taking extra hours at work or renting out a room in your house, or even delaying action for now but setting up contingency plans for what to do in case things get worse. Even if you have to make changes to the plan later, simply having a plan can make you feel more secure.
  
  
• Concentrate on things you can control. There are a lot of things happening in the economy that are completely beyond your control, and focusing on these things can make you feel powerless. Instead, try to focus on the things that you can do something about. If you’re worried about your expenditures, try prioritizing your expenses and cut costs by eliminating expenses that are not absolutely necessary. Make sure to continue paying off and debts you may have because ignoring debt only worsens your financial situation.
  
  
• Think conservatively. Don’t rush to make major changes to your investment strategy just because you feel like you should be doing "something." Make appropriate adjustments, such as: if you are nearing retirement or are worried about your job or financial security, talk to your financial advisor about diversifying your portfolio to include more low-risk investments that will minimize the impact of a struggling market economy. Continue to think in the long term. If you take your money out of the market, you’ll miss the gains when it goes back up, which analysts agree it will eventually do.
  
  
• Keep things in perspective. It’s only money. That may seem like cold comfort to someone who is losing their house, but try to remember that things like your health and your friends and family are truly the most important things in life.
  
  
• Stay healthy. Eating healthy, getting enough sleep and adequate exercise are critical to dealing with stress and anxiety. In addition allowing yourself enough personal time can help clear your mind of negative thoughts and do wonders for stress management.
  
  
• Talk to someone. Talking to someone can help you understand your fears and may even help you get over some of them. This could mean talking to a professional financial advisor about your situation or simply talking to a friend or family member. If you feel like your fears are interfering with your life, you may want to talk to a therapist.

For more information on how to successfully manage stress, see the Healia Health Guide on Stress Management or join the Healia Health Community for Stress Management. For more information on Generalized Anxiety Disorder, read the Healia Health Guide on Anxiety or ask a question to the people in the Healia Health Community for Anxiety.

Related blog post: Risk of Mental Health Problems Jumps as the Economic Crisis Grows and the Stock Markets Dive.  

_{Source: Anxiety Disorders Network of America, Spotlight: How to Survive Tough Economic Times and Manage Your Anxiety. http://www.adaa.org/gettinghelp/MFarchives/EconomicTimes.asp}

_{Photo: qnr, Flickr, Creative Commons}

The holiday season can be a time filled with joy and fun, but it can also be very stressful and depression is common. This year, the risk of holiday stress and depression may be compounded by the current poor economy and financial instability. The demands of traveling, entertaining, holiday shopping, parties, family reunions, and house guests can be overwhelming. In addition, unrealistic expectations, financial constraints, and the inability to be with one’s family and friends can cause stress and lead to the “holiday blues.” You may feel fatigued or anxious, have difficulty sleeping, or feel like all the fun has been taken out of your holiday experience. These feelings can cause people to adopt unhealthy coping mechanisms such as excessive drinking, overeating, and social withdrawal.

Feelings of sadness may also arise after the New Year, when a “post holiday let down” can set in. You may feel disappointed about your holiday experience or sadness that the events are over and won’t return for a whole year. This can be compounded by excess stress and fatigue from the all the effort you put into the holiday period and the financial repercussions of your holiday spending.

The following is a list of tips that can help you cope with and manage stress and feelings of sadness during the holiday season and beyond:

• Keep your expectations manageable. Try to set realistic goals for yourself this holiday season. This can help you avoid time conflicts and keep your stress level down.


• Identify your stressors. Pay attention to the things that stress you out or make you sad. If there are certain holiday events or situations that trigger bad feelings, recognizing ahead of time this can help you prepare to deal with the stress or sadness they may cause.


• Be aware of unhealthy coping behaviors. Coping mechanisms such as excessive drinking and social withdrawal do not help in the long run and tend only to increase your feelings of stress or sadness.


• Take care of your health. Remember to exercise regularly, eat healthy, and make sure you get enough rest time and enough sleep. Engage in holiday activities that you enjoy and find relaxing. Doing these things will help you better cope with stress.


• Ask for help when you need it. Don’t try to be a martyr and do everything by yourself. Let others share in the responsibility of planning activities. If you need support, rely on friends and family to help get you through. Spend time with supportive and caring people. Reach out and make new friends, or contact someone you haven’t heard from in a while. If you feel truly overwhelmed by stress, consider seeking professional help from a counselor or therapist.


• Organize your time. Make a list and prioritize the important activities while being realistic about what you can and cannot do. Pace yourself. Don’t put the entire focus on just one day or one event. If you can’t get something done today, leave it for tomorrow.


• Don’t focus on the past. Each year’s holiday season is different. Avoid the temptation to compare this year to the last or to “the gold old days.” Making such comparisons sets you up for disappointment.


• Do something for others. Spend some time volunteering to help others or give to charitable organizations. Such gestures can make you feel good about yourself and can help combat the overly commercial focus of modern holiday seasons.


• Enjoy activities that are free. Examples of free activities include taking a drive to Enjoy activities that are free. look at holiday lights and decorations, going window shopping, taking kids sledding, or making a snowman with the family. These activities can be a welcome respite and have the added bonus of not depleting your back account.


• Try something new. You can celebrate the holidays in a new way while still respecting your family’s holiday traditions.


• Take time for yourself. Don’t forget that in addition to all the family activities and obligations, you need some “me time” too. It can help you relax and decompress and may also help you gain perspective about the things that stress you out.

For more information on stress management or to share a story about your stressful holiday experience, join the Healia Health Community on Stress Management.


_{Sources: National Mental Health Association, Factsheet: Holiday Depression and Stress, Updated 3/07; American Psychological Association, Holiday Stress Tips, 2006.}

_{Photo: Effervescing Elephant, Flickr, Creative Commons}

Anyone who has ever been suddenly overcome with the urge to smile after passing a smiling person on the street is likely familiar with the idea that happiness is contagious. But having happy friends also tends to make you happier, according to a recent study published in the British Medical Journal. More surprisingly, the study also suggests that your overall happiness level can be influenced by the happiness of acquaintances and even by total strangers.

Your happiness level has huge implications for your health, including having a protective effect on your immune system and lowering the levels of stress hormones you produce. Being happy has also been associated with reduced pain perception, improved cardiac function, and reduced mortality.

In the study, American researchers examined data collected over 20 years from the Framingham Heart Study, an ongoing epidemiological study on heart health conducted in Framingham, Massachusetts, to determine how people’s ratings of their own happiness related to the happiness of other people in their social network. They found distinct happy and unhappy clusters significantly bigger than would be expected by chance.

Happy people tended to be at the center of social networks and had many friends who were also happy. Amazingly, happiness appears to spread outward not just to friends, but to friends of friends, and even to the friends of friends of friends, three degrees away from the original happy person. This means that the happiness of people you may not have ever met may influence your happiness level.

The researchers note that the effect is not just due to happy people connecting with other happy people, which they do. Beyond that, there seems to be a contagious process in which happiness spreads throughout the connections in a social network.

Interestingly, this spreading effect held true only for happiness. The researchers found that the spread of unhappiness was much less consistent and also more limited in scope.

The researchers estimate that each happy friend you have boosts your own chances of being happy by 9 percent. Having grumpy friends decreases it by about 7 percent. In general, the more friends you have, the more likely you are to be happy because each friend increases the probability that you're at the center of a network, which means you are more eligible to get a wave of happiness spreading through the social network.

While the data for the study was conducted prior to the advent of social networking Web sites on the internet, you can bet that such communities operate in a similar way. According to the researchers, since this type of technology enhances your contact with friends, it should support the kind of emotional contagion observed in the study.

The researchers also provide another reason to be cheerful during these tough economic times. According to the research, an extra chunk of money increases your odds of being happy only marginally — notably less than the odds of being happier if you have a happy friend. Maybe this year you can give the people in your social network a different type of holiday gift: a smile.

To join in a social network that allows you to connect with other people who share your health concerns, sign up for Healia Health Communities today. It just might make you happier :-)

_{Photo: Angi Unruh, Flickr, Creative Commons}

After dropping for several years, the rate of suicide in the United States rose from 1999 to 2005. And most of the increase was attributable to growing numbers of white middle-aged people who committed suicide. According to a new study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, from 1999 and 2005, the suicide rate among white women and white men (40-64 years old) rose 3.9 and 2.7 percent respectively each year. Other age and racial groups did not experience a significant increase.

The researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health believe that white, middle-age people are emerging as a new high-risk group for suicide. Many experts have speculated about the potential reasons for the increased rate among white baby-boomers, including mental health issues, substance abuse, economic insecurity, family pressures, and dissatisfaction with middle age, but the cause of the observed increase remains unclear.

Untreated depression is considered to be a leading cause of suicide. The study’s researchers recommend that friends and families reach out to and help people who may be depressed and susceptible to suicide.

_{Photo: gotplaid?, Flickr, Creative Commons}

This week, the Dow Jones and Standard&Poor's 500 Indexes had their worst week of declines in history. The global credit crisis has dramatically increased people’s anxiety about the economy, jobs, and personal wealth around the world.

From a health perspective, more and more people are losing sleep and suffering emotional distress. On Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that the global economic downturn could lead to a rise in mental health problems. This week, the WHO launched the annual World Mental Health Day, which is intended to increase funding and services for the mentally ill.

In these challenging economic times, it is natural that people will become anxious and emotionally distressed. However, it is important that people do not feel that they need to handle this stress by themselves. Rather, they should seek help from trusted friends and family or a mental health professional before the stress becomes too overwhelming.

Do you have suggestions for how to deal with the stress associated with the current economic crisis? If so, please share them with the members of Healia Communities.

_{Photo: Preciouskhyatt, Flickr, Creative Commons}