SIX WAYS TO FEEL HAPPIER, BE HEALTHIER 

How a positive attitude really can make a difference

A good mood not only influences how you feel today, it can have a powerful impact on your health for years to come. Scientists urge us to be as attentive to our moods and attitudes as we are to our physical health. "Happiness is no magic bullet, but the evidence is clear and compelling that it changes your odds of getting a disease or dying young."

Here are six mood boosters to make the world look rosier:

1. Adopt an Animal Companion
People who share space with a pet, experience less stress and have lower blood pressure, cholesterol levels and triglyceride levels than those who don't. An astonishing 97 percent of dog and cat owners reported that they talk to their pets. Did the other 3 percent lie?

2. Turn On the Music
Music lessens anxiety before surgery, promotes healing and reduces the levels of the stress-related hormone cortisol. (Higher levels of cortisol can lead to a decreased immune response.) Music can also lower blood pressure, reduce arthritis pain and speed post-stroke recovery.

3. Have a Good Laugh
In addition to helping prevent heart disease, a good laugh increases the number and activity of disease-fighting cells, dulls pain, reduces levels of stress-related hormones and prompts the release of feel-good chemicals called endorphins.

4. Get Back to Nature
Walking and cycling are types of low-intensity cardiovascular exercise that can reduce the risk of heart disease. Worried about your weight? Exercising outdoors often burns more calories than the same workout indoors.

5. Help Yourself by Helping Others
Volunteers who devote time to community organizations or who informally help out friends, relatives and neighbors report greater happiness and better health than those who don't. About 100 hours a year (only two hours a week) is sufficient to reap health benefits such as lower stress levels, lower rates of depression, healthier weight, reduced insomnia and a strengthened immune system.

6. Try Tai Chi
The gentle movements of tai chi reduce anxiety and depression, improve sleep quality, lower blood pressure and relieve chronic pain. These low-impact, slow-motion exercises encourage you to focus on your breathing and your body and allow you to concentrate fully on the present. This mind-body practice can prevent or treat a number of health problems, including heart disease, high blood pressure and sleep problems. Read the full article at http://www.aarp.org/health/healthy-living/info-05-2011/6-ways-to-feel-happier-be-healthier.1.html