IF YOU always look on the bright side of life, here’s another reason to be
cheerful—you’re less likely to have a stroke. Bruce Jonas and his
colleagues at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta,
Georgia, followed more than 6000 people for an average of 16 years. They found
that severely depressed people were 73 per cent more likely to have a stroke
than their cheerful counterparts (Psychosomatic Medicine, vol 62, p
463). Even people with mild depression had an increased risk of a stroke.
To continue reading, today with our introductory offers
Advertisement
More from New Scientist
Explore the latest news, articles and features
91É«ÇéƬ
A type of fibre that stimulates GLP-1 release approved for use in food
News
Space
The best new science-fiction novels published in July 2026
Culture
Environment
Slowdown of AMOC ocean current may be gradual and reversible
News
Life
First new open-ocean subsea research habitat in 40 years launched
News
Popular articles
Trending New Scientist articles
1
The world's fastest spider tops 3.5 metres per second
2
Babies are born with the neural foundations for maths
3
A type of fibre that stimulates GLP-1 release approved for use in food
4
Humans sleep the least of all apes – is it the secret to our success?
5
The best new science-fiction novels published in July 2026
6
Where, when and how to watch the 2026 solar eclipse
7
I’m the first person whose life was saved by CRISPR base editing
8
US government wants to have a useful quantum computer by 2028
9
How menopause radically changes the brain – and what happens after
10
We’ve uncovered a master gene that switches on human development
