On "happiness" and hypertension (in response to RISK)

RISK: http://blog.risk.net/2007/03/towards_a_theory_of_cardiovasc_1.html
FT: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/f035d56e-c92b-11db-9f7b-000b5df10621.html
Research paper: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/staff/faculty/oswald/hypertensionfeb07.pdf
ALEA: http://www.aleablog.com/2007/03/03/happiness-economics/
First, I must confess I have not read the research paper itself.

Second, I must point out. Risk says "blood pressure... is linked fairly closely to national happiness". Alea says "nations that regarded themselves as happy reported lower levels of hypertension. " The phrase "regarded themselves" is very important - in fact, it is the crux.

Happiness is not well-defined and it is probably not very wide off the mark to say that the perception of happiness is linked to a particular culture. The research is fine - it just should not extrapolate the findings to other cultures; and it does seem to do that since it time and again uses phrases like "national happiness", "mental health" etc.

FT says "It is now well established that people in richer countries tend to be happier than those in poorer ones." My personal experience however does not support that at all - in fact it is quite the contrary. My question to FT is - "Please, who established it and how?". I have a deep suspicion the establishment is based on research papers such as this again.

Also, I think it strange there is no mention of smiles (the real ones not the volatility ones!). Isn't it obvious that happpiness would be linked to the number of smiles in a day?