Fame may 'lead to a shorter life'

Having a glittering career in the public eye may come at the cost of a shorter life, an analysis of obituaries in a US newspaper suggests.

It showed performers and sports stars tended to die a few years younger than people successful in other careers, BBC reports.
The researchers acknowledge the study does not provide any conclusive answers, but said it asked interesting questions about the cost of fame.

The data was published in QJM: An International Journal of Medicine.
Researchers in Australia looked at 1,000 obituaries in the New York Times between 2009 and 2011.
They showed that performers, such as actors, singers and musicians, as well those who made a career in sport died the youngest - at an average age of 77.

Writers, composers and artists died at 79. Those classed as academics, including historians and economists, survived until 82 on average while those in business or politics made 83.
The researchers, at the University of Queensland and the University of New South Wales, said cancer, particularly tumours in the lungs, was more common in performers.