Experiencing stress in the workplace has been shown to increase the risk of heart disease for women under 50 years of age. Research conducted at Glostrup University Hospital in Denmark and published in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine has found the link and say the effect is greater for younger women. 12,000 female nurses took part in the study. They were aged between 45 and 64 and their health was followed for 15 years. Those women who rated work pressure as "much too high" were 35% more likely to develop heart disease than those who coped better with the pressure. This finding was in place even after accounting for other risk factors such as smoking and diabetes. When the researchers looked at age differences, it was the younger women who were most affected.The researchers suggest that as women get older other risk factors become more important.

My book Promoting Happiness has chapters dedicated to both work satisfaction and stress and stress management.

Don't bother trying to do more than two things at once - your brain just won't be able to cope. Researchers at Ecole Normale Superieure in France monitored brain activity using imaging to see what happened when participants completed tasks. When carrying out one task, one side of the frontal lobe was shown to light up. When given two tasks to do at the same time, The left frontal lobe was active for the main task and the right frontal lobe was active for the secondary task. As such, the brain was able to cope when two tasks were being carried out, effectively switching between the two hemispheres. However, when a third task was introduced, the brain struggled to cope and inaccuracies occurred. The researchers believe this also gives insight into the difficulties people have when faced with a decision when there is more than two choices. So, to maximise your brain's efficiency, forget trying to do more than two things at the same time and when making decisions, take the options two at a time.

If you want to be happier, consider the content of your conversations. The more meaningful they are, the happier you may feel. Research has continued to reinforce the notion that good social connections and support are important to happiness and wellbeing. Now research suggests that what you talk about with others has an impact on your happiness.The University of Arizona study had 79 people hooked up to a device which recorded their conversations for 30 seconds every 12.5 minutes over four days. 23,000 recordings were gathered and classified as either 'small talk' or 'substantive'. The participants' wellbeing and personality was also tested. Those people with the greatest levels of wellbeing spent less time alone and a lot fewer of their conversations were classified as small talk. Of course it is unknown if deep conversations makes a person happy or if happy people prefer such conversations. I guess, the take away message is: try cutting down on small talk and see if you feel happier as a result. By the way, substantive does not mean about serious philosophical debate it just means being more engaging than 'nice dress'.

The body's ability to utilise insulin properly can be hampered from just one sleepless night. It is important that sugar in the bloodstream is processed properly, else Type 2 diabetes can develop, Research published at the Leiden University Medical Centre in the Netherlands found sleep restriction for just one night reduced insulin sensitivity by 19 to 25%. Nine healthy people took part in the study and were examined after an eight hour sleep and a four hour sleep. Type 2 diabetes is associated with being overweight and inactivity, but lack of sleep can be a further contributing factor. Modern society remains anti-sleep with pressure on people to do everything. Of course, thinking long term, diabetes can have massive health consequences - where your precious time will be spent in doctor's surgeries or hospital. So sleep well, eat healthily and get some exercise.

If you work 10 to 11 hour days, you may be increasing your chances of developing heart disease by 60%. 6,000 British civil servants took part in the research which was published in the European Heart Journal.  A strong link was found between the 369 cases of heart disease (resulting in death, heart attack or angina) and time spent doing overtime. A good work life balance is important to health and happiness and this research reinforces this notion. The more time spent at work means less time available to unwind, deal with their stress and take care of themselves. Furthermore, such people may be eating on the go, rather than ensuring their diet is a healthy one. The researchers suggest that such employees may also continue to work through an illness, which will slow down recovery. The actual reasons are not clear, but researchers are keen to make people aware that too much overtime can be regarded as a risk factor for heart disease.

In Australia, a person can legally drive with a blood alcohol level of under 0.05. To stay under this level it is recommended a person drinks two standard drinks in the first hour (one for a woman), then one drink an  hour. However, if you want to reduce your risk of crashing, research suggests you are better of steering clear () of alcohol altogether. 326 drivers who had been admitted to the emergency room after a crash were interviewed by researchers from the University of Udine, in Italy. They discovered that just one glass of alcohol six hours before driving increased the risk of a crash more than double. Two drinks tripled the risk. I guess the lesson here is that even though a person theoretically have a drink before driving, doesn't necessarily mean they should.

The fitter you are, the longer you will live. This is according to a research study published in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. 4,384 middle and older aged adults had their fitness levels tested between 1986 and 2006. They were then followed for around nine years. When grouped in terms of fitness, the following was found:

In the least fit group, a quarter had died during the study period.

In the slightly fitter group, 13% had died.

In the fittest group of all, 6% had died during the nine years.

The study found that what mattered most was their recent activity levels. An indication then that it is never too late to start an exercise program. The importance of exercise on its own was emphasised, since the researchers accounted for weight, blood pressure, and diabetes.

15 ways to promote happiness

I have created a squidoo page with the intention of sharing simple ideas to bring about greater wellbeing, increased mood and  overall happiness.

I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed creating it.

One last tip, not included: create your own page about a topic that interests you.