19 Nov Happiness and health – positive psychology can stop you getting sick
You’ve tried everything to cure your cold: medications like tylenol, home remedies, staying in bed all day and drinking plenty of Vitamin C. Have you tried smiling? If not, Sheldon Cohn, Ph.D., a psychology professor at Carnegie Mellon University thinks you should.
New research shows that a positive attitude brings fewer cold symptoms. Cohn’s research included interviewing 334 volunteers three evenings a week for two weeks to assess their mental state. Volunteers were given a squirt of rhinovirus, the germ that causes the common cold, and were checked for five days afterward for signs of infection.
Research showed that emotions and attitude had no impact on who caught a cold, but those with a positive take on life showed fewer cold symptoms while they were infected.
Do your best to avoid cold symptoms this season by maintaining a positive attitude. Washing your hands, getting plenty of sleep and Vitamin C also couldn’t hurt!
For the full article, see http://www.odemagazine.com/exchange/3889/a_smile_a_day_keeps_the_doctor_away