Personal Health: News and Notes

A good marriage is good for the heart.

University of Rochester researchers found that happily married people who had heart-bypass surgery were three times as likely to be alive 15 years later as single people.

For men, being married was a plus, whether they were happy or not, although survival improved the happier they were. Only high-satisfaction marriages were associated with longer lives for the women, according to the study published Monday in Health Psychology.

The study followed 225 people who had surgery between 1987 and 1990. Fifteen years after the surgery, 83 percent of the happily married women were alive, compared with 28 percent of the unhappily married women and 27 percent of those who were single. The differences were not statistically significant when researchers controlled for age, but lead author Kathleen King thinks they would have been if more women had participated.

Survival for happily married men was also 83 percent, but 60 percent of the unhappily married guys were alive too. Only 36 percent of the single men made it. The effect was statistically significant after controlling for age in men.

The researchers hypothesize that people in happy marriages are more likely to have strong support from a spouse and be motivated to adopt better health habits. Women may have stronger physiological responses to stress.

- Stacey Burling

Everyone knows that being a couch potato is rather unhealthy because it involves being sedentary, usually while snacking.

Now some Australian researchers say they are the first to estimate exactly how much you shorten your life by watching TV.

The researchers used actuarial and other data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and from a decadelong lifestyle study. Then they made statistical adjustments to control for variables that could shorten life span such as age, weight, smoking, education, hypertension, and cholesterol.

Looking strictly at TV viewing and normal life expectancy, they found that sofa spuds who watch a lifetime average of six hours a day can expect to live almost five years less than people who spend no time in front of the tube. But here's a bigger bummer: "On average, every single hour of TV viewed after age 25 reduces the viewer's life expectancy by 22 minutes."

That makes those Seinfeld reruns as deadly as obesity and smoking!

The study, which appeared last week in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, may be "limited" by "low precision," the authors acknowledged.

- Marie McCullough

Dry mouth, an annoyingly common side effect for nearly half of Americans who take prescription medication, can be a much bigger problem than many people expect.

In its worst form, dry mouth can lead to extensive tooth decay, mouth sores, and oral infections, especially among the elderly who are more likely to consume drugs.

Groups such as the American Dental Association and the American Pharmacists Association are seeking to spread awareness about the link between medications and dry mouth, or xerostomia.

In a recent release, the ADA advises that individuals who experience frequent dry mouth should have regular dental checkups for evaluation and treatment, since adequate salivary flow helps protect the mouth and teeth.

Oral health professionals say dry-mouth sufferers can alleviate symptoms by chewing sugarless gum, taking frequent sips of water, and avoiding tobacco, coffee, alcohol, and carbonated beverages.
- Juliana Schatz

About to uncork that bottle of merlot? A study finds that moderate drinking may cut the risk of dementia and cognitive decline in older people.

Researchers analyzed 143 studies that looked at the association between moderate alcohol consumption and mental abilities. The meta-analysis, published this month in the journal Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, looked at research dating to 1977.

Overall, those who drank moderately were 23 percent less apt to acquire dementia or other forms of Alzheimer's disease, or to develop some cognitive damage.

Heavy drinking, on the other hand, was linked with slightly higher risk of dementia and cognitive impairment that was not statistically significant. Heavy drinking was defined as having more than three to five drinks a day, and moderate drinking as one drink a day for women, two for men. - Los Angeles Times