Daily Health News Blog

Do highly stressed or angry people get more ulcers and backaches? Maybe, maybe not. People who develop these problems have a wide range of personalities and habits; some are very stressed, others are calm and contented. What about cancer and heart disease? Some studies suggest that pessimists or introverts are at higher risk, others that optimists or extroverts are no better off. Research into the relationship between personality traits and disease has created a lot of shifting ground over the years. Why the confusion? First, “personality types” are constructs by researchers and don’t necessarily correlate well with the real world. What’s more, dozens of overlapping traits, in various permutations, have been studied. There are countless ways to measure them, plus many theories of personality that use different terms and concepts. Most people don’t fit neatly into one type and may change over time. And just because there may be a link between a personality trait and a disease do...