Winning World Cup Lowers Heart Attack Deaths-Study
(Reuters) - Winning soccer's World Cup not only lifts a nation's spirits, it lowers the death rate from heart attacks, doctors said on Tuesday. During the 1998 World Cup when France defeated Brazil in the final, deaths from heart attacks in men and women dropped on the day of the match, which was watched by 26 million French TV viewers. Instead of about 33 deaths a day in the five days before and after the match, 23 men died of a heart attack on match day. There were also fewer deaths in women but the decrease was not as significant.