Go to bed

Accidentally becoming healthier. Also, 7 other things worth your time.

What’s the date today? December 1, I think? Time flies.

This means it’s been a month already since I traveled cross-country for the first time since the pandemic (for a writing and publishing conference), which also means it was my first time dealing with jet lag in two years.

I used to travel like this all the time for work, but going from Eastern to Pacific really takes a toll on me now.

Result? Well, for one thing I caught myself eating a ham and cheese sandwich and drinking a diet Pepsi at 8:30 in the morning one day. But on the other hand, I was in bed and asleep before 10 p.m. almost every night for several days. It was amazing.

It also turns out that without even planning to, I'd made a simple lifestyle change, temporary as it was in my case, that could reflect a reduced risk of heart disease.

That’s the study I want to share today, in my meandering introductory way. It starts with something called the UK Biobank, which is a planned 30-year study of the health and habits of more …