Simply happy: Five tips for a healthier, longer life

Many people wish for a long and fulfilling life well into old age. A few habits can help achieve this goal.

Most people dream of a long, happy, and, above all, healthy life.

To achieve this, many people pursue different strategies, such as more exercise, abstaining from alcohol, or reducing sugar intake. In fact, a study suggests there might be a magic bullet.

A study by Harvard University identifies certain lifestyle factors that could increase the chances of living to an older age without chronic health problems.

Why your lifestyle matters

In contrast to previous studies, this work was the first to investigate the extent to which combining different health factors enables a long, healthy life.

Factors such as physical activity, smoking, drinking habits, weight control, and diet were taken into account.

"We wanted to find out if a healthy diet and exercise could extend life not only in terms of life expectancy," Dr. Frank Hu, professor at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health and lead study author, told the portal ' Healthline '.

"We also wanted to see if this lifetime was free from chronic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes."

Moreover, indeed: "This study provides evidence that a healthy lifestyle can significantly extend a person's years of life without disease".

5 factors for a longer life

Within the study, researchers examined data from approximately 73,000 women and almost 40,000 men. At the start of the study, none of the participants had cancer, cardiovascular disease, or diabetes.

For over 20 years, study participants were monitored for new diagnoses and deaths due to these diseases. Factors such as age, ethnicity, and family history of the disease were taken into account.

The observations revealed five factors used to calculate a healthy lifestyle score.

• Never smoke
• At least 30 minutes of physical activity daily
• Moderate alcohol consumption
• Maintaining a moderate weight (healthy BMI below 25)
• A healthy and balanced diet

Health is the basis for a long life.

The study's results clearly show how strongly the adaptation of individual factors can affect long-term health.

By the age of 50, the women who did not follow any of the healthy, low-risk lifestyle factors had already had cancer, heart disease, or diabetes for 26 years.

The women who adhered to four or all five points had, on average, 10 fewer years to deal with health problems.

The results for the men were similarly precise.

The male subjects, who did not follow a healthy lifestyle in any respect, had also been suffering from one of the diseases for 26 years by the age of 50.

When the subjects led a healthy lifestyle with four or five healthy habits, the disease burden shrank to just 19 years.

Your diet is also crucial.

According to scientists, proper nutrition is key to a long, healthy life, especially for heart health.

"High blood pressure is the leading cause of death worldwide. Small lifestyle changes, such as better diet and exercise, can improve the diagnosis," explains Dr. Katrina Miller Parrish, spokesperson for the LA Care Health Plan.

To support your body in this way, you should specifically integrate fiber-rich foods into your diet. This means eating plenty of whole grain products, vegetables, and fruit.

Legumes such as beans, lentils, and peas also support health and reduce the risk of heart disease, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure.

Conversely, foods high in sugar, sodium, saturated fats, and simple carbohydrates should be avoided. People with high cholesterol, in particular, should avoid such ingredients.

Harmful in any quantity: Smoking and obesity

What is absolutely detrimental to health: smoking and severe obesity.

As the results show, men who smoked more than 15 cigarettes a day and people with a BMI over 30 had the lowest chances of living a disease-free life.

"We looked at five lifestyle factors: healthy eating, a good body weight, low alcohol consumption, no smoking and physical activity," Hu summarizes.

"For smokers, the most important thing is of course to quit smoking. For people with obesity, it is important to lose weight and maintain a healthy body weight."

The researchers emphasize how essential it is for those affected to quit smoking. The longer a smoker abstains from cigarettes, the greater the positive effects on the body.

"In the first one to ten years after quitting, the risk of heart disease and lung cancer decreases, and after 15 years the risk is almost at the level of non-smokers."

A good argument to reconsider one's unhealthy habits.

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