WEIRD STUFF

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Pet death can cause serious mental illness

Losing a beloved pet can hurt just as deeply as losing a human loved one.

A study published in the journal PLOS One has found that grief following the death of a pet can meet the clinical criteria for prolonged grief disorder (PGD), a serious mental health condition normally associated only with bereavement after the loss of a person.

PGD is marked by intense longing, despair, social withdrawal and difficulty carrying out everyday tasks. Sufferers often report feeling as though a part of themselves has died.

Until now, the diagnosis has been reserved exclusively for those grieving human relationships.

The research, which surveyed 975 adults in the UK, found that 7.5 per cent of people who had lost a pet met the diagnostic threshold for PGD. That rate closely mirrors grief following the death of a close friend and sits only slightly below grief linked to losing a grandparent, sibling or partner.

Only the loss of parents and children produced significantly higher rates of PGD, at 11.2 per cent and 21.3 per cent, respectively.

Strikingly, around one in five participants who had experienced both pet and human bereavement said the death of their pet had been more distressing -- despite previous studies showing many people feel embarrassed or ashamed admitting how deeply a pet's death affects them.

The findings suggest that one in 12 cases of PGD in the UK may be triggered by the death of a pet, largely because around half of adults own animals and pets' lifespans are much shorter than those of humans.

Swift's hits found to distract drivers

Taylor Swift's hit song The Fate of Ophelia could increase the risk of reckless driving because of its fast tempo and attention-grabbing lyrics.

A new study found that songs playing at more than 120 beats per minute (BPM) are more likely to distract motorists and encourage speeding.

The Fate of Ophelia, which has topped the charts in both the US and UK, clocks in at 124BPM -- putting it firmly in the risk zone.

Scientists tested the effect of Swift's music on 46 volunteers from Coventry in England, evenly split between men and women, who completed a series of driving simulations while listening to different tracks.

When faster songs were played, drivers tended to accelerate more, react slower and show poorer hazard perception.

The dangers were amplified when tracks featured heavy bass, complex rhythms or emotionally evocative lyrics -- a combination the researchers say applies to several of Swift's most popular songs.

Ovoko's Kazimieras Urbonas, whose car-parts marketplace commissioned the research, said: "Her songs are known for featuring evocative and complex lyrics, which make them especially detrimental for those who already struggle to maintain focus while driving.

"Fans should be cautious when asking their parents to turn up the radio or blasting the new album loudly themselves, as four of the most popular tracks can prove distracting for drivers and meet the conditions associated with speeding."

The research, published in the Ergonomics Journal, identified several other "danger tracks" from Taylor's 2025 album The Life of a Showgirl.

These include Actually Romantic at a rapid 170BPM, the titular song at 156BPM, and Opalite, which runs at 125BPM.

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Night lights could be killing your heart

Sleeping with a light on may feel comforting, but new research suggests it could damage your heart.

Scientists tracking almost 90,000 adults have found that exposure to bright light at night is linked to a significantly higher risk of developing -- and dying from -- cardiovascular disease.

In the study, led by researchers from the US and Australia, participants wore wrist-mounted light sensors while sleeping. Over nearly a decade of follow-up, scientists compared night-time light exposure with diagnoses of coronary artery disease, heart attacks, heart failure, atrial fibrillation and strokes.

The results were striking. People exposed to the highest levels of light while asleep were 56 per cent more likely to develop heart failure and 47 per cent more likely to suffer a heart attack than those who slept in darkness.

They were also 32 per cent more likely to develop coronary artery disease and 30 per cent more likely to have a stroke -- regardless of how long or how well they slept.

Women appeared particularly vulnerable, with high night-time light exposure linked to a greater risk of coronary artery disease than in men.

Writing in JAMA Network Open, the researchers said: "Night light exposure was a significant risk factor for developing cardiovascular diseases in over 40s. Avoiding light at night may be a useful strategy for reducing risks of cardiovascular diseases."

Professor Frank Scheer, a neuroscientist at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and co-author of the study, said: "For something like light exposure at night, there's no downside to keeping it dark other than using a dim light for safely getting out of bed.

"If you have somebody who's at risk for cardiovascular disease or somebody who has insomnia, asking patients about their light-at-night exposure and recommending to keep it dark might be especially important.

"It doesn't necessarily need to be pitch-dark. If you keep light really dim, below five lux -- which is the equivalent of five candles at arm's length -- you can still see your surroundings, but it has minimal effect on your circadian system."