I read with some amazement in the Spring issue of Cosmetics International that a study run by the University of St. Etienne in France and backed by L’Oreal, found that older women who put on makeup in the morning are less likely to have accidents than those who have the bare-faced cheek to venture outside without wearing cosmetics.

The study included one hundred women aged 65-85 and found that those wearing makeup stood straighter and were more stable on their feet. Researchers believe that applying makeup could serve as a form of stretching exercise, improving balance and coordination. So let it be said with emphasis that you’re never too old to wear makeup especially if you don’t want to end up on a walker.

And there’s more interesting news flowing in from Japan by way of cosmeticsdesign.com. (Those Japanese scientists are really busy with all kinds of studies to do with skin and health.) This time they’ve discovered, by using brain scanning equipment, that women experience a wave of euphoria and optimism as they prepare for their makeup routine. Isn’t that interesting! So, it isn’t just about feeling good after we’ve put on our makeup, we feel good before. Just imagining how we’re going to look sends us into paroxysms of joy.

The optimism bit was interesting. Perhaps makeup is all we need to turn the economy around. More female bankers, please!