Recipe for Longevity: No Smoking, Lots of Friends

By: Laura Blue

A healthy social life may be as good for your long-term health as avoiding cigarettes, according to a massive research review released Tuesday by the journal PLoS Medicine.

Researchers at Brigham Young University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill pooled data from 148 studies on health outcomes and social relationships — every research paper on the topic they could find, involving more than 300,000 men and women across the developed world — and found that those with poor social connections had on average 50% higher odds of death in the study's follow-up period (an average of 7.5 years) than people with more robust social ties.

That boost in longevity is about as large as the mortality difference observed between smokers and nonsmokers, the study's authors say. And it's larger than differences in the risk of death associated with many other well-known lifestyle factors, including lack of exercise and obesity. "This is not just a few studies here and there," says Julianne Holt-Lunstad, lead author on the review and an associate professor of psychology at Brigham Young University. "I'm hoping there will be recognition from the medical community, the public-health community and even the general public about the importance of this."

The friend effect did not appear to vary by sex or by age, with men and women of all ages and health statuses showing roughly equal benefit. Nor were lonely people unusually susceptible to any one disease in particular.

But if it's true that we get by with a little help from our friends, then how, exactly, do our friends do it? That is, how does "social integration" — measured by surveys and questionnaires about friends, family size, marital status and the number of household residents — influence long life? The short answer is that we don't really know yet. "The truth of the matter is that the critical evidence on psychosocial processes and health has come about only within the last 10 to 15 years — even though there's been a lot of theory on it since the 1970s," says psychology professor Bert Uchino at the University of Utah.

That may help to explain why doctors, for the most part, have yet to embrace social support as a factor in good health, on par with smoking habits, diet or exercise. Without a good sense of the physiological mechanisms that may link feelings of loneliness, for instance, to biological markers like blood pressure and resting heart rate, it has been easy to dismiss the power of social connections as nothing more than an artifact of the data or, worse, as touchy-feely pseudoscience.

To be sure, the direct physical evidence of the health benefits of social support is much more preliminary than the population-level association reported by Holt-Lunstad. But the evidence is mounting, says Uchino, who has written widely on the physiological links between social life and health outcomes. (Uchino did not contribute to the new review in PLoS Medicine, but has collaborated with Holt-Lunstad on other projects and was, once upon a time, also her grad-school adviser.)

We turn to family and friends for obvious tangible support when we're sick — from help preparing meals to keeping track of pills, appointments and insurance forms. And caring about others may also prompt us to take better care of ourselves. "A really good example, of course, is someone who has a child," Uchino says. That new bond is often the impetus to quit smoking, to drink less or to curb any number of risky pastimes.

But the influence of social ties may be even more powerful than that. Social relationships, it seems, may also help our bodies help themselves.

Recent lab studies have shown that, in a stressful situation, blood pressure and heart rate will increase less when people are accompanied by a person who is close to them. Brain imaging also shows neurological differences between a person who is alone and a person who has support: in a lab-induced tense situation, brain activity in the anterior cingulate cortex, a region activated in times of stress, is attenuated when people have a close friend or relative alongside them. And it's not just adult stress. In an experiment published this spring, children who were allowed to talk to their mothers after a stressful encounter — giving an impromptu speech or doing math problems in public — showed increased levels of oxytocin, a neurotransmitter thought to dampen the hormonal stress response, compared with children who did not have contact with their mothers.

In one of the most famous experiments on health and social life, Sheldon Cohen at Carnegie Mellon University exposed hundreds of healthy volunteers to the common cold virus, then quarantined them for several days. Cohen showed that the study participants with more social connections and with more diverse social networks — that is, with friends from a variety of social contexts, such as work, sports teams and church — were less likely to develop a cold than the more socially isolated study participants.

The immune systems of people with lots of friends simply worked better, fighting off the cold virus often without symptoms. Studies suggest that the immune response may be affected by stress hormones — catecholamines and glucocorticoids — so that a strong social life thus affects immune function by helping people keep physiological stress in check.

But turning such research into full-fledged medical advice isn't easy. "It's hard to legislate social relationships," Holt-Lunstad says. "And we all know that some relationships are better than others, and not all relationships are entirely positive."

Since Holt-Lunstad's new study reviewed the statistical association between mortality risk and relationship quantity, rather than perceived quality, she wonders whether we wouldn't see even stronger benefits if we focused only on the good relationships. Bolstering these connections may ultimately help people stay healthier than trying to build connections between complete strangers, as in, say, a cancer support group. (Studies on the physical health benefits of support groups show mixed results.) "We need to pay better attention to naturally occurring relationships and to fostering those," Holt-Lunstad says.

Source: http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2006938,00.html?xid=rss-topstories

COMMENCEMENT CHALLENGE - VOTE FOR KALAMAZOO CENTRAL!!!!!

Kalamazoo Central is one of six high schools in the nation, and the only one in Michigan, selected to compete in the Race to the Top High School Commencement Challenge. During the next two weeks, the field will be narrowed to three schools, and then, one.

President Obama will speak at the commencement ceremony of the high school selected!!.

Today through Thursday, people across the country will be voting on videos created by each of the six high schools. I encourage you to participate and support the entry from Kalamazoo. Please link to the following site to cast your vote! http://www.whitehouse.gov/commencement

The finalists were chosen from among hundreds of entries based on a number of measurements for improvement and success. This is already an extraordinary honor for K-Central, Kalamazoo Public Schools, our city, county and state.

Join us in voting for Kalamazoo in the Race to the Top High School Commencement Challenge.

Building a bridge between special-ed and regular students: Schoolcraft students share talents and good times in Common Bond program

By Alison Black Special to the Kalamazoo Gazette

It isn't always easy for special education students to feel connected to a school community through extracurricular activities.

At Schoolcraft High School, a student club named Common Bond has been making it easier for more than a decade.

Over 100 students — about one quarter of the high school's student body of approximately 400 — signed up last fall to join Common Bond, an extracurricular club that pairs regular and special education students in a variety of monthly activities and events.

More than 90 percent of the school's cognitively, developmentally and emotionally impaired students have joined mentor students this year in activities such as a trip to a local bowling alley, a video game and crafts night, and a magic show, said Common Bond founder and special education teacher Amy Green.

"I see the club as a win-win situation for both the challenged kids and the mentors because they all learn from each other," Green said.

The club gives special education students peers that they can relate to and feel comfortable around in classes or the hallways, Green said.

"For our mentors, all of us are out there in the real world know people who have challenges, and I think this experience brings a lot of compassion," Green said.

Carlee Stoker, a junior, has been a mentor in this "X-treme friendship club" since her freshman year. Stoker joined to spend time with a special education student with whom she has been friends since first grade.

"You always know you're going to have fun and you get to interact with unique people you might not have talked to," Stoker said.

"Sometimes, you have to talk to people and just kind of get them to do the things that we're all doing"--such as rock-climbing on a recent trip to Sherman Lake YMCA camp, Stoker said--"but it always works out."

Sophomore Riley Pressley, a second year club member, said that she enjoys eating lunch and spending time with club members outside of a classroom setting.

"I've learned a lot about the other challenge students in the (autistic instruction) room," Pressley said. "Challenge students can be fun to be around, too."

For some students, "some of their challenges are social skills, so this gives them a chance to practice being outside of class with others," Green said. "It's not just a good time -- it's a chance to interact."

Higher-functioning special education students often make the transition from mentee to mentor, Green said.

"They sign up just wanting to be a part of something, but when they get here, they end up stepping up, shining and evolving as mentors," Green said.

For Green, a constant challenge is funding: Common Bond was started with funds from a mini-grant awarded by the State of Michigan that has since dried up, and the club stays afloat with donations from parents and community organizations, Green said.

"The big question is always, 'How do we fund this?' I always say, 'Beg, borrow and pray,'" Green said.

Students pay what they can to participate in monthly activities, and club funds make up the balance where families have trouble. Often, parents will send double the amount needed for their own child's participation in order to help out another student, Green said.

On tap for the rest of this year: a miniature golf outing, another trip to Sherman Lake camp, and the annual "Senior Send-off" party to thank the club's seniors for their participation.

"It's just been kind of cool how the whole thing has evolved over the years," Green said.

© 2010 MLive.com. All rights reserved.

Resource link: http://www.mlive.com/living/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2010/04/building_a_bridge_between_spec.html

NAA applauds Congress for Passing Federal Legislation to End Abusive Restraint and Seclusion in Schools

NIXA, Mo., March 4 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today the National Autism Association celebrated the passing of H.R. 4247, the Keeping All Students Safe Act, on Wednesday and those responsible for spearheading the bill. Congressman George Miller (D-CA) and Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) introduced the federal legislation as a much-anticipated solution to the issues of unregulated restraint and seclusion in schools.

The bill, which passed 262-153, sets guidelines that allow physical restraint or locked seclusion only when there is imminent danger of injury. It bans restraint that restricts airflow, mechanical restraints such as strapping children to chairs or duct-taping body parts, mandates notification to parents, and prohibits behavior-controlling medications that aren't prescribed by doctors.

In January of 2009, a report from the Disability Rights Network spurred the May 2009 Government Accountability Office (GAO) Report that investigated hundreds of cases, including deaths from "mechanical compression to the chest," or "smothering." One schoolchild died from restraint following a seizure, another died from hanging himself in a seclusion room. Other cases included a four-year-old girl who was tied to a chair and abused, five children who were duct-taped to their desks, and a ten-year-old boy who was put in a seclusion room "75 times over a 6-month period for hours at a time for offenses such as whistling, slouching and hand-waving."

The report also revealed no federal laws regulating restraint and seclusion in schools, no laws in 19 states, and "widely divergent" laws in remaining states.

Although state laws have been nonexistent or inconsistent, many Republican lawmakers were not in favor of the bill. "One of our parents received a letter from their Republican Congressman that stated, 'The responsibility for ensuring that students are properly treated lies with state and local governments, as well as school boards. Therefore, I encourage you to contact your state and local officials regarding this matter.' But relying on States isn't keeping our children safe," explained National Autism Association Board member Leslie Phillips. "Our children are being abused and killed. This legislation is so necessary and actually provides resources to States. We're grateful for Congressman Miller's efforts and all who support this bill."

In addition to the legislation, NAA feels surveillance cameras in special education classrooms are imperative. "Many of our children are nonverbal and cannot communicate acts of abuse. Surveillance cameras will protect both schoolchildren and staff," stated NAA Executive Director Rita Shreffler.

To support the Senate companion bill, please visit NAA's Autism Action Center at http://naa.kintera.org/actioncenter

CONTACT: Lori McIlwain (Cary, NC) 919-741-1646
Wendy Fournier (Portsmouth, RI) 401-835-5828

SOURCE National Autism Association