Don't stress over your birthday

It's strange to have made the transition from birthday lover to birthday dreader. As a kid, I couldn't wait to blow out the candles and open gifts from my friends and family. Some of my fondest memories are from childhood birthdays, including the fourth grade party where my friend Albert threw up all over the all-you-can-eat sundae stand. Not so fun for Albert, but what a memory it made for.

But, as I find myself getting further and further away from even my college years, I look forward less and less to that once special day in March. Well, based on what I recently read, I'd do well to chill out a little bit about the whole getting older thing. The stress alone may be enough to lead to sudden cardiac arrest.

In one study, Canadian researchers found that the psychological factors involved with birthdays (i.e. getting older, people feeling lonely, expectations being dashed, feelings of failure) can lead to heart attacks and heart failure. After examining the records of some 50,000 patients treated for heart failure in Ontario during a two-year span, the researchers uncovered a strong correlation between birthdays and the onset of some heart problems. While birthdays do not appear to have much affect on other illnesses, the stress involved in another year's passing seems almost exclusively linked to valvular heart crisis.

I think I'll go away for my birthday this year. Somewhere relaxing sounds good.