HealthHippieMD

View Original

Harvard Study Suggests Five Daily Habits that can add 12-14 Years to your Life

Jeffrey Taekman

With the technological understanding and wealth of the United States, one might think our longevity would be among the best in the world. It's not. In the U.S., longevity does not even remotely correlate with financial expenditures. Sadly, the U.S. currently ranks way down the list according to data from the World Bank. At the top of the longevity list are Hong Kong, Japan, Macao, and Singapore. U.S. peers are way down the list, including Bosnia, Thailand, and Ecuador. The reasons for the wealth / longevity conundrum in America is multifactorial. But all is not lost. If you want to outlive the predictions, a few lifestyle behaviors may add a decade or more to your life expectancy.

A 2018 study from Harvard University's T.H. Chan School of Public Health reported five habits that could prolong a person's life by more than a decade. For the study, researchers reviewed 34 years' worth of data from 78,000 women and 27 years' worth from more than 44,000 men.

The five habits are:

  1. Don't smoke or use tobacco in any form.
  2. Drink alcohol in moderation.
  3. Get thirty minutes of exercise daily.
  4. Eat a healthy, anti-inflammatory diet.
  5. Maintain a healthy body weight.

Of course, most people want to not only live longer they want to stay healthy longer. Scientists have dubbed this concept "healthspan." A significant component of healthspan is cognitive ability. The recommendations for keeping a healthy brain expand on the list and include:

  1. Control blood pressure.
  2. Manage blood sugar.
  3. Stay mentally active.
  4. Stay socially connected.
  5. Treat hearing problems.
  6. Sleep well.
  7. Protect your brain from traumatic injury.

Remember, these recommendations come from a wide range of scientific studies. Therefore, adhering to these recommendations is not a guarantee of increased healthspan/lifespan, but, instead will set you up for success.

References: