Sucessful AND Famous? You May Die Young
Here's something that may shock you. According to a story at The Atlantic, stars and athletes you see all the time commanding seven-figure salaries may not live as long as you.
Lindsay Abrams reports that "people who are famous and successful have shorter lives." A 2001 study found that Academy Award winners live longer than less famous actors, but a 2009 study discovered that people who were both successful and famous died younger than the rest of us.
How did they obtain this information? By studying who gets an obit in The New York Times, according to Abrams. True, famous people didn't die all that young, at a little over 77 years, but famous people in business lived to 83, higher than the national average of a bit past 78 years.
"Philanthropists, academics, and doctors were more likely than others to die of 'old age,' a diagnosis that occurred least often for performers, athletes, and creatives," Abrams notes.
Why? Those who are famous often succumb to drugs and other risky behaviors, and some, especially actors, who are big smokers, die younger, of lung cancer.
So it's nothing so shocking, but think about this the next time you hunger after a seat in the convertible next to Daniel Padilla (don't know who he is? I had to look him up, too.)
After all the dreadful news this week, at least we can stop envying those we'll never be!
http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/04/study-people-who-are-famous-and-successful-have-shorter-lives/275078/
Lindsay Abrams reports that "people who are famous and successful have shorter lives." A 2001 study found that Academy Award winners live longer than less famous actors, but a 2009 study discovered that people who were both successful and famous died younger than the rest of us.
How did they obtain this information? By studying who gets an obit in The New York Times, according to Abrams. True, famous people didn't die all that young, at a little over 77 years, but famous people in business lived to 83, higher than the national average of a bit past 78 years.
"Philanthropists, academics, and doctors were more likely than others to die of 'old age,' a diagnosis that occurred least often for performers, athletes, and creatives," Abrams notes.
Why? Those who are famous often succumb to drugs and other risky behaviors, and some, especially actors, who are big smokers, die younger, of lung cancer.
So it's nothing so shocking, but think about this the next time you hunger after a seat in the convertible next to Daniel Padilla (don't know who he is? I had to look him up, too.)
After all the dreadful news this week, at least we can stop envying those we'll never be!
http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/04/study-people-who-are-famous-and-successful-have-shorter-lives/275078/
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