Oftentimes we find it acceptable to tell what we call “white
lies” to the people around us, for a multitude of reasons. Maybe
you don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings, or maybe you just
don’t feel like dealing with a situation and tell a little lie
to avoid it altogether. Besides, these lies are harmless…or so
we used to think. A new study from the American Psychological
Association has found evidence that lying may actually have
negative health consequences. Think back to grade school, when
we all learned that President George Washington could never tell
a lie, and he lived to the ripe old age of 67 — a lot based on
1700’s standards. Consider that the average person in his time
only lived to age 36! For those who prefer more scientific
evidence, consider this: The group of people within the study
who told the most lies suffered from higher levels of anxiety,
depression and exhaustion, among other ailments. On the other
hand, the study participants who made it a point not to lie
overall had better mental and