And while science has yet to find a true fountain of youth, researchers have identified certain behaviors that can increase longevity. One study , published in the journal Circulation last year, even argued that adhering to just five healthy habits could extend your lifespan by roughly a decade.
Diet is strongly linked to longevity. Research has long suggested that following a Mediterranean diet — which includes plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and healthy fats, and not much sugar, red meat or processed food — brings a host of health benefits , including a longer life.
Other studies have also found longevity benefits associated with some of the specific foods and nutrients included in a Mediterranean diet, such as whole grains , fiber , fish , plant-based proteins and healthy fats. On the other hand, foods including processed snacks and meats , fried foods and sugar-sweetened beverages have been linked to higher risks of chronic disease and death.
Federal physical activity guidelines recommend aiming for at least minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity each week, plus twice-weekly muscle-strengthening sessions, to reap health and longevity benefits. Even short bouts of light physical activity , such as walking and cleaning, increased the lifespans of older men and women in studies from and , respectively.
If you do opt for a more vigorous workout, some research suggests that team sports like tennis and soccer are best for longevity, because they encourage social interaction as well as exercise.
A recent study found longevity benefits associated with both life-long and later-in-life exercise. Fully ripened pears and blackberries have more disease-fighting antioxidants. And in watermelon, a deep red color signifies more lycopene, an antioxidant that may reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease. A high-sugar diet boosts blood sugar, which in turn plays havoc with your heart by increasing levels of LDL cholesterol while lowering heart-friendly HDL cholesterol, and tripling your risk for fatal cardiovascular disease.
The American Heart Association recommends that women consume no more than 6 teaspoons 25 grams of added sugar a day, and men no more than 9 teaspoons 36 grams. Vitamin D, a bright byproduct of sunlight, has many health benefits, including a link to longevity.
But too much vitamin D increases your risk of dying as much as too little, according to a Danish study. So you want to get the right amount. The smart plan: Ask your doctor if you would benefit from extra D in pill form. In a large study of more than 40, Japanese men and women, drinking five or more cups of green tea a day was associated with a 12 percent decrease in mortality among men and a 23 percent decrease among women. Not taking time off work might, indeed, be deadly.
One study of men at high risk for coronary artery disease found that those who failed to take annual vacations were 32 percent more likely to die of a heart attack. And in the long-running Framingham Heart Study, women who vacationed just once every six years were eight times more likely to develop coronary artery disease or have a heart attack than women who vacationed twice a year. The average American eats one serving of whole grains daily — and that may be just a single morning slice of toast.
Chan School of Public Health. Have some oatmeal or brown rice, or get adventurous and go for quinoa, barley, even farro. Eating hot chili peppers may add years to your life. In a analysis of the dietary habits of more than 16, men and women over 23 years, those who reported eating hot peppers reduced their risk of dying by 13 percent. Not a fan of those peppers? Even a little spice can have health benefits.
But research published in the journal Circulation in concluded that those who consumed the most dairy fat had a 50 percent lower risk of developing diabetes, a disease that can shorten your life by eight to 10 years on average. Bonus: It might even help you lose weight. Researchers at the University of Illinois found that those who sipped more H 2 O ended up eating 68 to fewer calories per day.
Learn about health discoveries, explore brain games and read great articles in the 'Your Health' Newsletter. Coffee does more than help you wake up; it also reduces your risk of stroke, diabetes and some cancers. Mind you, a cup is 8 ounces, so your ounce Starbucks grande is really two cups by that measure. A University of Maryland study found that Amish men live longer than typical Caucasian men in the United States, and both Amish men and women have lower rates of hospitalization.
What are the Amish ways? Lots of physical activity, less smoking and drinking, and a supportive social structure involving family and community. In a study of 73, adults, most in their mid to upper 50s, vegetarians were 12 percent less likely than carnivores to have died from any cause during the six-year study period.
The study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine , found that mortality rates were lowest overall for pesco-vegetarians those who eat fish occasionally , followed by vegans those who eat no animal products , and lacto-ovo vegetarians those who eat dairy and eggs.
The Mediterranean diet, with its reliance on fruits, vegetables, olive oil, fish and nuts, is one of the healthiest diets for both overall health and longevity. Harvard researchers, reporting in the BMJ in , found that those who followed the diet most closely had longer telomeres, which cap the end of each strand of DNA and protect chromosomes from damage. Even those who only sporadically followed the diet reaped longevity benefits, researchers found.
Cutting your portions helps you cut calories, which aids in weight loss and more. If you want to reach , put down the fork, says Dan Buettner, who studies longevity hot spots around the world, such as Okinawa, Japan.
Buettner found that the oldest Okinawans stop eating when they feel 80 percent full. A National Institutes of Health-funded study similarly found that cutting back calories reduced blood pressure, cholesterol and insulin resistance.
More-than-moderate alcohol consumption generally, more than one drink a day for women or more than two a day for men leads to a shorter life span. Money might not make you happier, but it will help you live longer.
A study by Stanford researchers published in JAMA found that people whose income bracket was in the top 1 percent lived nearly 15 years longer than those in the bottom 1 percent. The disparity could be attributed to healthier behaviors in higher-income groups, including less smoking and lower obesity rates, researchers say. Loma Linda, Calif. Nevada, Indiana and Oklahoma have the lowest life expectancy less than 78 years.
A few studies on the link between pet ownership and health have found that owning a pet can reduce anxiety, lower blood pressure, even improve the odds of surviving a heart attack. Now the American Heart Association has weighed in with a report published in the journal Circulation that recommends owning a dog, in particular, for those seeking to reduce their risk of deadly heart disease. Dog owners are more likely to be physically active and are also less vulnerable to the effects of stress, the report says.
Do you wake up looking forward to something? In a study published in the Lancet , researchers found that those with the highest sense of purpose were 30 percent less likely to die during the 8.
Attending religious services once a week has been shown to add between four and 14 years to life expectancy, according to researchers who study blue zones. Ask to join a friend at her services, or just drop in at a nearby house of worship; most have an open-door policy.
Even seemingly healthy foods — like sprouts, cantaloupe, berries and raw tuna — can make you sick or even kill you, says the FDA.
Your action plan: Keep your kitchen pristine, wash your hands and utensils before and after handling food, separate raw and cooked foods, refrigerate perishable food promptly, and cook food to a safe temperature to kill deadly bacteria. People residing at higher altitudes tend to live longer, a study by the University of Colorado and the Harvard School of Global Health revealed. Of the 20 healthiest counties in America, many are in Colorado and Utah.
Researchers think lower oxygen levels might cause your body to adapt in ways that strengthen your heart and circulation. Eating a handful of nuts five times per week can lower your mortality risk from certain diseases. In a European study of adults ages 55 to 69, those who ate 10 grams of nuts daily — 8 almonds or 6 cashews — reduced their risk of death from any health-related cause by 23 percent.
Hu says that none of the five factors stood out as more important than the others; the benefits in saving people from disease and in extending life were similar across all five.
Further, the evidence suggests that the contributions of each factor are additive—the number of years of disease-free life gained increased with each additional healthy habit people followed.
Contact us at letters time. Live Well. Back To Home. By Alice Park. Chan School of Public Health found that adopting five healthy habits could extend life expectancy by 14 years for women and by 12 years for men: eating a diet high in plants and low in fats exercising at a moderate to vigorous level for several hours a week maintaining a healthy body weight not smoking consuming no more than one alcoholic drink a day for women and two for men.
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