Shopping good for your health

[Guest guest]

FYI (got this from an online health newsletter I subscribed to).

Lyndon McGill, D.C.

EvolvHealth Wellness Advisory Council Member

Salem, Oregon

www.SalemSpineClinic.com

www.EvolvingDaily.com

Study: Frequent Shoppers Live Longer

It’s a shopaholic’s dream. Serous research now suggests your

favorite activity may contribute to a longer life.

That’s right. Scientists in Taiwan looked at the shopping habits

of 1,841 mature adults, and discovered something odd. Over a

10-year period, people who shopped often were 27% less likely to

die than those who rarely went shopping.1

Shopping? It may sound a little crazy at first, but here’s why it

makes sense…

Frequent shopping encourages lots of healthy social interaction.

It gets you out and moving, so it’s also a form of gentle

exercise. And it may be linked to eating fresher, healthier foods.

The Taiwanese study seems to bear this out. Frequent shopping was

linked to a lower death rate in spite of the fact that nearly

two-thirds of the frequent shoppers had two or more long-term

health conditions.

And while we usually think of women as being more avid shoppers,

men actually received a greater benefit from frequent shopping. In

the study, women who frequently shopped had a 23% lower risk of

death. But men’s risk dropped 28%.

Shopping is linked to more than just a lower risk of death. Do

the right kind of shopping, and you could boost your health… and

the health of those around you, too.

A brand new study shows that much of what we thought we knew

about jobs – and their impact on health – may be completely wrong.

For years, everyone has wanted big company jobs. Big companies

pay higher salaries … offer more benefits… and more often provide

health insurance. So communities with lots of big-company jobs

should be healthier, right?

Not true, say scientists at Baylor and Louisiana State

Universities. In fact, they found just the opposite is

true. The healthiest people live in counties with the healthiest

small business environment.

Researchers looked at more than 3,000 counties and parishes

across the U.S. They found people were healthier where small

businesses thrive.

One reason may be that most big companies don’t offer the

advantages they used to. According to the study, big-company wages

– in real dollars – went down a third between 1988 and 2003. Many

big company jobs have been cut to as little as 30 hours. And big

employers have cut insurance plans to the bone – or dropped them

completely.

So the “healthy advantage” big companies may have once offered

simply doesn’t exist anymore.

On the other hand, communities with a high percentage of small

businesses are thriving. The researchers discovered that small

businesses are more likely to support community services and

projects – such as stop-smoking programs, local farmers markets

and youth activities. All of which promote better health.

Shopping at local, independent businesses builds support for

those programs. It builds a stronger sense of community. And it

helps improve your own health… and that of your neighbors, too.

Yours in continued good health,

Dr Woliner, M.D.