The Economy Project
(2009-10-04)
People wait in line looking for jobs during a Job Fair at the Miami Dade College in Miami, Florida
Researchers at the University of Michigan believe recessions might actually be good for your health.
A study of disease and mortality rates around the time of the Great Depression found people were less likely to die or get sick when economic times were bad.
Researchers found that mortality rates peaked during the boom years before and after the Great Depression.
"It seems that in the period of the Great Depression, in spite that more people were unemployed, the net effect of the changes in the society was to increase the level of health rather than to decrease it," says Jose Tapia Granados, one of the authors of the report.
Tapia cites a number of possible reasons for the trend. He says other studies show people tend to drink and smoke less during down times. He says cuts to overtime can also decrease worker stress and may lead to fewer heart attacks.
He says traffic also goes down during a recession and that can mean less air pollution and a decrease in respiratory problems. © Copyright 2010, Michigan Radio
