Lessons in living Longer

You know that adage, “you are as young as you feel”, it’s clinically proven to be true! When Yale University researchers studied the mortality rate of seniors who had a positive attitude about their age, physical ability and embraced a youthful spirit ended up living seven and a half years longer than others. Those who refused to buy into the negative cultural stereotypes about aging when they were younger had a better outlook about their life when they got older. That’s cool right! I estimate that most of the time my mental age is about 16 years old…so I’ve got a long way to go before I’m a true senior.

Okay, ready for some more age defying surprises! Those of us who are conscientious, in other words diligent, hard-working, responsible and self-disciplined live longer. Not only because we are less likely to adopt risky behaviors, like smoking, but we also evade dementia. And not just by a little but a lot, 89% to be exact.

Living in a pedestrian friendly neighborhood increases our lifespan by a decade and lowers a woman’s risk of obesity by about eight percent. Walking, jogging, riding a bike all add to a healthy dose of physical activity and increased life expectancy.

How about another cup of joe! A few cups of coffee a day for a gen joneser can decrease our risk of Alzheimer’s. Drinking three to five cups a day lowers the risk of dementia by 65% over those that drank fewer than two cups a day. The research done at the University of Kuopio in Finland found that caffeine reduces plaque formation in the brain. Sorry crew, decaf doesn’t have the same effect though it does have some good antioxidants.

Add some spice to your life. Researchers tested 24 common herbs and spices and found high amounts of compounds that may stop the inflammatory damage caused by elevated blood sugar levels. The heavy favorites are cinnamon, thyme, Italian seasonings and cloves. “The active compounds in these herbs and spices have the potential to reduce the inflammation that contributes to nearly every human disease” says the study’s co-author, James Hargrove, PhD. That’s EVERY HUMAN DISEASE people…so in this case it’s safe to say “Spice is the variety of added life!”

Finally my favorite lesson to living longer, surround yourself with happy people. Scientists have found that happy people live longer because their good spirits protect them from illness. The added bonus, happiness is contagious, you can catch it from the people around you. Choose your friends by the smiles they keep on their face.

Some other living longer fun facts:

Asian American women live the longest of any ethnic group with a life expectancy of  91 years.

Firstborns are twice as likely to reach 100 years old than their younger sibs.

January babies live two percent longer than their sisters born in June.

Women with hips wider than 41 inches outlive their smaller counterparts with similar BMI. Isn’t that an unexpected blessing!

Better sleepers outlive their nocturnal counterparts by 17 percent.

Those of us who pray together stay together — much much longer than the rest.