5 Healthy Habits for Longevity

by Shaula Saldaña June 17, 2020

How Diet, Exercising and a Healthy Weight can Help You Live a Decade More

Longevidad

  • Researchers deduce that healthy life habits can add up to a decade more to your life span.
  • Several researchs have identified five lifestyle core factors that can help with longevity included diet, exercising and keeping a healthy body weight.
  • Experts conclude that the two most important habits to accomplish this are staying away from smoking and being overweight.

We would all like to live long in good health.
Now, a scientific study has concluded that there are lifestyle factors that can increase your chances of reaching old age without chronic health problems. Much research has been done on lifestyle choices, such as smoking, physical activity, drinking habits, weight control, and diet, that affect our overall lives and the likelihood of experiencing chronic illness.

However, few studies have looked at how a combination of these factors relate to a long disease-free life. Following a healthy diet and exercising can prolong your life span, also contributing to a life expectancy free of chronic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Since not only the extension of life-span was investigated, but also the duration of said life without chronic diseases, which means that there is an increase in years of life free of chronic diseases by having these 5 healthy habits for our body.

 

The Five Key Health Factors

Longevidad, resultado de hábitos saludables, dieta y ejercicio

Los participantes del estudio no tenían cáncer, enfermedad cardiovascular o diabetes cuando se inscribieron.

Study participants were routinely evaluated for new diagnoses and deceases from cancer, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes for more than 20 years. The researchers adjusted for age, ethnicity, family medical history, and other considerations.

Low-risk lifestyle factors used to calculate a healthy lifestyle score included:

  • Not Smoking
  • At least 30 minutes of daily physical activity
  • Moderate alcohol consumption
  • Maintaining a moderate weight (defined as a BMI less than 25)
  • A good quality diet
These five factors together gave a final low-risk lifestyle score ranging from 0 to 5. A higher score indicated a healthier lifestyle.


Something to keep in mind is that a healthy lifestyle with low impact, tolerable physical exercise; a good, balanced and colorful diet; hydration; and an adequate amount of sleep can do wonders to help maintain a positive mental attitude and fitness state.

 

Prolonging your Life-Span with Healthy Habits?

Ejercicio aumenta la longevidad

That's right, with these forementioned 5 healthy habits in your life, you'll add more years of life free of cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

While hypertension is the leading cause of death worldwide, many lifestyle changes, such as better diet and exercise, can affect this diagnosis to varying degrees, especially depending on regimen and adherence.

 

Diet Is Key!

Dieta es un factor importante para mantener la buena salud

Being selective about what's entering your body is one of the most important lifestyle factors to help you live longer.

Foods high in fiber have been studied for their variable benefits in respect of cardiovascular health, including the regulation of blood pressure. And also when frequenting foods that are of plant origin; like whole grains, fruits and vegetables.

In addition, legumes, such as beans, beans, and peas, have been found to reduce the risk of heart disease, high cholesterol levels, and high blood pressure.

For those who want to preserve their heart function and health, try to avoid foods high in sugar, sodium, saturated fat, and refined carbohydrates.

It's especially important to avoid these foods if you have high cholesterol. If you feel tempted to eat a food that is high in sugar, salt or fat, tend to look for another type of food that is healthier and more homemade.

It is good to go to your trusted Nutritionist to adjust caloric intake and achieve or maintain a healthy weight and waist measurement in middle age, since this is one of the most important ways to reduce the risk of diabetes, as well as participating in physical activities regularly avoiding smoke.

 

Smoking and its effect on Obesity

Obesidad y tabaco, su relación

According studies conducted over the years, men who smoked heavily, (defined as 15 or more cigarettes per day), and obese men and women (defined as a BMI of 30 or more) were least likely to have a disease-free life expectancy at 50 years.

The five lifestyle factors were observed: eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy body weight, not drinking excessively, not smoking, and being physically active. All are important, but for smokers, the most important thing to do, of course, is to quit. For obese people, it's important to lose weight and maintain a healthy body weight.

Something to keep in mind is that in the first 1 to 10 years after quitting smoking, the risk of heart disease and lung cancer decreases, and at 15 years of age, the risk of each one is close to that of a non-smoker.

 

In conclusion

It's already been proven, having these five factors present in your daily routine can ensure that you have a better quality of life and that you live longer enjoying good health. It's also great to start following these tips from a young age in order to have a more powerful field of action and prevent many diseases and future chronic diseases.

Experts in various studies emphasize that the most influential habits are not smoking and maintaining a moderate body weight.

 

Explore our Birdman Blog for more interesting articles on health, ecology, fitness, recipes and even workouts! If you're really keen on changing your lifestyle, how about starting with a healthier diet? Check out the benefits that a plant-based diet can give you as an athlete!

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References:

  1. Dhana, K., Nano, J., Ligthart, S., Peeters, A., Hofman, A., Nusselder, W., ... & Franco, O. H. (2016). Obesity and life expectancy with and without diabetes in adults aged 55 years and older in the Netherlands: a prospective cohort study. PLoS medicine13(7), e1002086.



Shaula Saldaña
Shaula Saldaña

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