NO DRAMA

Stressful Relations May Raise Death Risk

Pick your friends—and lovers—carefully.

Keep drama queens in your life at your own risk. New research from the University of Copenhagen suggests that surrounding yourself with stressful relationships may lead to an early death. Published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, the study examined 9,870 adults from 2000 to 2011. While it is already known that strong social networks have health benefits, “Less is known about the health consequences of stressful aspects of social relations, such as conflicts, worries, and demands,” said the study. It turns out, people who had frequent conflicts with their friends or partners had more than double the risk of dying. You may also want to hold off fighting with your neighbors about your property line: For those who argued with their neighbors, the risk of death more than tripled.