Life As A Rock Star Can Kill You

New Medical Study Quantifies Perils Of "Life In The Fast Lane"

(CBS)  Fame and fortune aside, life as a rock star can be downright deadly.

CBS News correspondent Larry Miller reports a new study, which charted the lives of 1,050 American and European music artists between 1965 and 2005, has found they are more than twice as likely to die young than the general population.

The information may come as little surprise to anyone who has turned on a television or picked up a magazine in the last 40 years, but it's the first data medical researchers have offered to quantify the perils of life in the proverbial fast lane.

According to the report published in Britain's Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, a quarter of all the musicians' deaths registered during the study period were due to drug or alcohol abuse, reports Miller. (audio)

One hundred stars died during the study, which showed slightly better life expectancy for rockers in the United States than Europe. The average age of death for Americans was 42, whereas their European cousins only made it to 35, according to the British Broadcasting Corporation.

Lead researcher Professor Mark Bellis called in the report for public health policy aimed at "preventing music icons promoting health-damaging behavior among their emulators and fans," the BBC reported.

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High Profile Healing

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There has been much debate recently in Britain over the role government and music industry moguls should play in curtailing the rambunctious behavior of idolized stars.

It came to a head when the parents of superstar singer Amy Winehouse made a public plea for her record label to drop her unless she quit her rampant alcohol and drug use. The singer shot to fame with songs including "Rehab," in which she sums up her view on seeking treatment with the a chorus of "no, no, no."

The editor of one of Britain's biggest music magazines told the BBC the problem for rock and pop stars may be the rapidity of success.

"The problem is that rock stars often spend the first years of their careers struggling to get by and then get everything really quickly. There is no control mechanism, and with a culture which often lauds excessive behavior that spells problems," NME news editor Paul Stokes said.

[nativewoman]

Really? I know I''m stunned and amazed. Who would have ever guessed such a thing?

Who funds these studies? What a waste of time and money.

[incog-nito]

Thank God for this article. I really wanted to be a rock star, but changed my mind after reading this.

[jimfinster]

This same thing can happen to ANYONE that becomes rich and famous very quickly. Look at what happens to lottery winners...

[bogusbones]

Do they need any test candidates to prove or disprove the theory?

[shanev137]

amy whohouse?

[billpl-2009]

people who aren''t rock stars are also perfectly capable of killing themselves too.

...so where''s the point?

the unfortunate thing about Amy, is that she''s one rock star worth saving. I hope she pulls through.

[boldwin223]

Human beings are shy and self-doubting by nature. Drug and or alcohol abuse is how we cope. Being an idolized star is not worth the cost. I hope her family can help her.

[ecuadoriana]

So... how do they explain Keith Richards?

[isushman-2009]

A lot of people have died trying to be like Keith Richards. Most drug addicts can''t afford Teflon septums and blood transfusions like he did (still does?)

[tnt1954]

its called ''poetic justice''. bob dylan
is still alive. he''s a poet, he knows it,
he blows it all the time. bubble has to
burst sometime. sometimes early, sometimes late.
flour power not flower power. can''t live
forever. in the deadly battle of the bands,
the entourages of rock stars include men and
women armed with ''powerful weapons''. its
a very dangerous profession.

[bobnjersey]

have they done any studies evaluating the likelyhood of somebody w/ the name winehouse become a drunk?

[nolalou]

ecuadoriana,

Some people get poisoned by drugs and alcohol, in Kieth Richards case, he just got pickled! (or mummified while still alive!)

[ecuadoriana]

"Some people get poisoned by drugs and alcohol, in Kieth Richards case, he just got pickled! (or mummified while still alive!)" Posted by nolalou at 03:54 PM : Sep 04, 2007

Chuckle, snortle!! So does that make him Pickled Richards? Or Pickled D!cks?

[intexa2]

Well, DUH!!! You mean they pay people to study such things?
All one has to do is check the papers every once in a while, or cpmputer or TV, and you''ll find deaths here and there among rock stars on a fairly regular basis. We have to have a study to tell us the obvious, that they die earlier to a higher percentage than the regular population?

It''s like another one today that women prefer good looking men and men prefer to date good looking women.

Where can I get a job studying such things/

[maedean]

Who paid for the grant for this study to take place our good ole goverment... How stupid can you be to not figure this one out...

[rasabaka]

How much many did it take to figure this out?

[gmond]

They could have just paid me to tell them that. Oh, and guess what? Men like pretty women. Cha-ching!

[taylpatr]

It''s a tough way to make a living.Everyone thinks they want to be in the band, but how many really have the fortitude to put up with all the bulls*it that goes along with it? Townes Van Zant said"I knew I could do this thing, but it takes blowing off everything.Family,money,
security, just blow it off, get a guitar and go."
He made it to 52.

[ajaxrose1]

I''m in the wrong business. I would have told them this for a fraction of what it actually cost. Where do I sign up for the next useless "study?"

[heaven4sure]

The comments suggest that no one in their right mind would aspire to the life of a celebrity - but yet so many are tempted to pursue that goal and are intrigued by others who achieve the status. Fame and fortune can not satisfy a heart that is made for God. Have you ever read what Brad Pitt thinks of fame and fulfillment?

If the link below does not work, go to www.heaven4sure.com and search for Brad Pitt.

http://www.heaven4sure.com/MeandGodQuestions/LifeLessons/tabid/58/ctl/ArticleView/mid/387/articleId/199/Brad-Pitt--Congenital-Sadness.aspx