Birthdays are a great time to get wasted while reflecting on another year of unrealized potential and less success than you hoped for as a young person who naively believed dreams come true in this country that increasingly lacks the opportunity for upward mobility. But according to a Swiss study that analyzed 2.4 million deaths over 40 years, birthdays can also be deadly.
The study found people are 14 percent more likely to die on the anniversary in which they came into this cold world by no choice of their own. The primary causes for birthday deaths are “birthday blues” related, including: stroke, heart attack and suicide, especially among men. The “postponement theory,” which suggests the terminally ill can hold on until their next birthday (or until the latest season of “Mad Men” concludes) may also influence birthday deaths.
Happy Birthday! Enjoy your day and try not to die!
Dewan Gibson: The Imperfect Blog
