death

Chatelaine editor's pick: Two Newfoundland men are brought back together years after a fateful day that took a family member's life

A recent story over at the BBC — "Why do Americans die younger than Britons?" — looks at life expectancy figures across Canada, the U.S., the UK, Japan and Australia. And, interestingly, the U.S. is lagging behind.

You might think that being happy is the fairly obvious answer to all of your problems. But it turns out that happiness might in fact be the worst solution ever to one of life's biggest problems: the inevitability of death. According to a recent story by Richard Alleyne in the Telegraph — "Feeling happy? Don't be too smug as chances are you will die young" — people who are excessively joyful are more likely to die young than their more dour peers.

I am currently trying to starve a cold (due less to science, and more to a phlegm-induced lack of appetite), so I guess this might count as good news. According to recent research reported by USA Today — "Could 'extreme' low-cal diets bring longer, healthier life?" — living in a state of constant deprivation might help extend your life. (Though it's debatable just how happy you'll be in the meantime if you have to forsake fried chicken, key lime pie and pork belly sandwiches. But maybe I'm just projecting.)

Today, another sad loss for the country and the family of Cpl Yannick Scherrer