27 Nov Ways to Extend Your Life
Many people want to live a long and happy life. However, that can be hard to do if your diet, exercise and lifestyle aren’t healthy. Studies show that people can live longer and better if they made a few specific changes throughout their day. With those changes, scientific studies actually show that DNA and cells in the body are younger than those who don’t practice certain healthy habits. Use these basics to extend your life!
Living Long and Prospering
We all want to live longer, and many people can live quite a long life if they so desire. You can definitely shorten your life by the way you live and the choices you make each day, but you can also extend your life as well. Your eating, sleeping, exercise, personal care and more can all help you extend your life for as long as possible.
Did you know that:
- The average life expectancy is 79 years in the United States.
- Between ages 55 and 65 is a common time for many people to get chronic conditions that affect their lifespan. These include countless conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, vision diseases, oral health diseases and more.
- 80% of people over 65 years have at least 1 chronic condition. 50% have at least 2.
- Tobacco use (especially smoking) and alcohol consumption can significantly shorten a person’s lifespan.
- Inflammation is the body’s autoimmune response to fight off foreign bacteria, illnesses, allergies and more. Swelling, pain and wear and tear that come with inflammation can shorten a person’s lifespan over time.
How Does Exercise Help You Live Longer?
The American Heart Association recommends that people (teens and adults) get at least 150 minutes of exercise every single week. That breaks down into about 30 minutes of exercise, 5 days a week. You don’t have to do those minutes altogether either. You can split up 10-minute segments throughout your day to hit 30 minutes.
Moderate exercise is exercise that allows you to talk but makes it difficult to sing according to the National Cancer Institute. Vigorous activity makes it difficult to say even a few words without trying to catch your breath. It’s recommended that people who do vigorous activity get at least 75 minutes of it a week.
Studies show that exercise boosts your body’s circulation, which can bring oxygen and nutrients to your tissues, organs and muscles that need them to grow. A steady supply brought on by exercising can help keep your body younger for longer. Studies even show that you can extend your life by simply standing up for part of the day if you are used to sitting down for working or lounging. Your body is functioning at a higher energy-burn standing than sitting.
Exercise also helps keeps your weight down, avoids obesity that leads to chronic condition, can help alleviate stress, irritability, mood issues and much more. The more you exercise, the better your body can rebuild itself and fight off infections, illnesses, conditions (like arthritis) that come from inflammation.
What About Diet?
Your diet plays a major role in how long you live, as the fuel you give your body is what makes it run. As the saying goes, “garbage in, garbage out.” If you rely on a sugary, fatty, or processed-food diet, you are possibly cutting years off of your life. This is because these types of food lack the daily nutrients a body needs to perform all your body functions properly. Many chronic conditions and illnesses stem from a lack of nutrients in the body.
To extend your life, make sure you cut out or cut down on sugary foods. Have a diet high in protein for muscle and cell building and repair. Stick to low-carb diets where you get your carbs from veggies and fruits instead of breads, pastas, tacos and more. Make sure you have plenty of fruits and veggies in your diet every single day.
Tips for Extending Your Life
There are many other factors that come into play when you want to extend your life:
- Take a multivitamin for better nutrition
- Invest in stress-relief activities like yoga. The less stress you have, the less inflammation and pressure you’ll have in muscles, joints, and tissues.
- Be social! Studies show that socializing with family and friends changes your mind, hormones and how your body functions so that you extend your life.
- Watch your sugar intake. Sugar is not a nutrient needed by the body, but is a substance that leads to countless chronic conditions and illnesses when eaten too often.
- Get enough sleep each night. This is the only time your body has to repair itself, so aim for the recommended 7-9 hours.
- Puzzles, games, crosswords, arts, crafts and more are all activities that are shown to boost cognition and keep your mind young. A young mind can help you live longer.
- Drink enough water each day, which is about ½ your body weight in ounces. Water lubricates everything in the body, helps circulation, and is involved in almost every body system for good health.
Get Help Along the Way
A smart way to start having better health is to have a health evaluation and nutritional assessment. Checking on your nutrition and testing for the presence of allergies and food intolerances can help us detect issues with your diet that cause you inflammation. That inflammation will certainly age your body, as it breaks down healthy tissues the longer it sticks around. Proper testing finds what environmental and diet factors hurt you so you can eliminate them to live longer.
We can also help you overcome painful effects of chronic conditions and extend your lifespan at the same time. Losing weight, feeling great and living long can all be a reality when you have the right information and help to achieve those goals. To have your free consultation, call Mile High Spine & Pain Center today at (720) 507-0080!