Is this yet another sign that your home office could be killing you? A 20-year study, published in May 2011 by Tel Aviv University researchers, found that office workers with weak social interactions had a significantly higher mortality rate than those with stronger social ties. 820 people participated in the study, which controlled for health risks such as obesity and smoking.

"Only one main effect was found: the risk of mortality was significantly lower for those reporting high levels of peer social support," the study abstract states. In addition, the report concludes that those with baselines ages from 38 to 43 years old produced significantly higher mortality risk than younger or older workers. The study concludes that peer support is a "protective factor" that reduces mortality risk.

What do you think about this study's conclusions? Do home office users face a legitimate health challenge here

There's some debate whether or not kneeling chairs promote better posture and help prevent lower back pain compared to traditional office chairs. Rather than sitting with thighs parallel to the ground, a person in a kneeling chair leans forward, with some of his body weight borne by the shins. The leaning position forces the user's back straight and helps prevent the slouching that can lead to lumbar problems.

A 2008 study of 20 people suggests that kneeling chairs can in fact promote better back health. According to the study, ergonomically designed kneeling chairs set at more than 20 degrees of inclination help users maintain a lumbar curvature closer to that of standing posture, than do standard office chairs. The study authors are careful not to draw any firm conclusions, due in part to the small sample size. "Further research with a greater number of subjects and on different chair designs is warranted," the study excerpt concludes.

Still, if you are worried about your back or are dealing with lower back pain, a kneeling chair may be a worthy investment.

I recently learned that some home owners in our neighborhood had detected heightened levels of radon in their structures. This can be a concern as radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas produced by the decay of uranium in soil and rock, and is undetectable by sight or smell. When excessive amounts of radon gas seep through home foundations, it can result in heightened cancer risk for those inside.

We tested our home last week and fortunately learned that our radon levels were well below the EPA-defined limit of 4 picocuries of radon per liter. Still, the experience brought home a serious point: As a home office worker I spend a great deal of time inside my house. It certainly makes sense for me to assess my work environment to make sure it is safe.

Should you have your home tested for radon? The About.com Home Buying site has a great backgrounder that can help you decide, titled Facts About Radon and Radon Testing. Not only does it explain the ins and outs of radon exposure and testing, it provides great information about ways to mitigate high radon levels in the home.

If you are like most folks, the sheer number of passwords you need to maintain for all your sundry Internet-based services is overwhelming. So overwhelming, in fact, that you've pretty much given up and simply reuse passwords across sites. At least, that's the finding of a report last year, which found that nearly three-quarters of online banking customers reuse their bank password on other, less sensitive Web sites. What's more, 47 percent of banking customers used both their password and user name on other sites.

That's incredibly dangerous. If you reuse login information across different sites, a hack of one site could put your login information into nefarious hands. At which point, you can expect hackers to bang your stolen credentials against high profile sites -- like Amazon.com or major credit card Web sites -- in an effort to gain access to real money.

The problem is even worse for home office users, who may use a dozen or more Web-hosted services in the course of their work. There are just a lot of account log-ins to keep track of.

Personally, I use (and entirely recommend) the KeePass password repository application for saving, securing and accessing your sensitive account and login information. You enter one password to get into your KeePass database, where you can quickly access all the sign-in data for your various Web sites, services, financial accounts and the rest. KeePass uses strong encryption to lock up your password data store, and works on Windows. However, versions are also available for Linux and iOS, as well for on mobile platforms like Android, iPhone, and Windows Phone.

I plan to dive into some KeePass tips and tricks soon. But in the meantime, I want to hear our input. What system or software do you use to keep track of your passwords and log-in information?