Diet & Life Style Info

In the U.S., and around the world people are living longer than ever before. There are now  about 80,000 centenarians in the US alone, which makes it one of the fastest growing segments of the population. This means about 1 in 6,000 people are over 100 years old.

There must be something that we can  learn from those who have survived a century or more? Many people are trying to figure this out and studying these people who have made it to 100. It is important to remember too that not only do you want to live long, you also want to have an enjoyable lifestyle at 100 as well. So what have the experts learned so far?

The New England Centenarian study published some information, not too long ago which we have summarized in the following. Note that as more information is learned, the ideas expressed here may change and be updated.

1. Genes play a critical and complex role in conferring exceptional longevity.

Lifestyle and our attitudes towards our bodies can help our genes or hurt them when it comes to living well into our 80′s, 90′s and even to 100!

• Almost no centenarians are obese. Obesity contributes to the biggest diseases in our country, like diabetes and heart disease.
• Smoking history is rare.
• Centenarians are better able to handle stress than the majority of people.
• 85% of centenarians are women and 15% are men.
• At least 50% of centenarians have first-degree relatives and/or grandparents who also achieve very old age. Again those Genes!

2. Keep on moving

Scientists in California found that people over 50 that exercised over 5 hours per week lived longer and functioned better physically and cognitively. They tracked participants who ran as aerobic activity over 20 years to find that they all had “less heart disease, cancer, neurological diseases, and infections.” In other words, “Aerobic exercise keeps the immune system young.” So, if you aren’t moving you are decreasing your lifespan.

3. Make every calorie count

The standard American diet is very high in calories, typically 2,000 to 3,000 calories. Additionally, the high calories aren’t packed with vital nutrients, but instead sugar and fat.

• Eating a healthy diet doesn’t only mean decreasing your calories, but getting the most nutrition per calorie. The most nutritious foods include vegetables, fruits, and whole grains.
• Anti-oxidants: very simply put, an antioxidant is something that prevents or slows down oxidization. In much the same way as oxidation creates rust, causing a breakdown on the surface of an old car, oxidation inside the body causes a breakdown of cells. For instance, cholesterol in our bodies is not necessarily harmful until it becomes oxidized, which then causes it to start clinging to our blood vessels, which can then lead to clogging of our arteries. Antioxidants can help to prevent this. They can also provide other benefits to your skin and hair. Antioxidant vitamins include vitamins A, C and E. The most inexpensive way to get lots of anti-oxidants is to eat grapes or berries.
• Fish Oil: contains Omega 3s. The typical American diet is missing the great benefits of Omega 3s which are found in high concentrations in fish. Omega-3 fatty acids slow the rate of damage to your genes. And, fish oils have many other protective anti-aging benefits such as decreasing bad cholesterol.
• Vitamin D: The lack of vitamin D can cause inadequate absorption of calcium, resulting in broken or brittle bones. As we age, deficiency in Vitamin D is common. The reason for this is because we make most of our Vitamin D from the sun. Most older individuals aren’t getting outside for long enough periods on a daily basis to make an adequate amount. Also, our skin (where the Vitamin D is synthesized), gets less efficient at making Vitamin D altogether as we get older.

4. Aging is about attitude

If you respect your body, and have a positive optimistic outlook on life, you will tend to look after yourself more, eat the right foods, exercise and your years lived will be extended.

5. It is never to late to make changes to lifestyle.

As we grow older, it really is about quality of life. We want to be able to do many of the things we have always done and enjoy our families and grand children. We do not want to be constrained because we are over weight, or have heart problems or lung problems. Our bodies are really quite fantastic and can recover from many things, so why not give it some help now and focus on improving your life style now!

Recent studies by scientists are uncovering a phenomenon that points to the more exercise you do , the longer you are likely to live. Exercise appears to ensure that more blood gets to organs and tissues, they are cleaned of impurities and they receive more oxygen, which contributes to overall health and longer life. Of course like anything else you can overdue exercise and begin to have to much wear and tear on muscles, joints and ligaments. For most people it means exercising moderately 4 or 5 times a week with out enduring extreme wear and tear on your body.

The scientists are reporting that not only that signs of premature aging were halted — they were even reversed — in virtually every tissue and organ in the bodies of exercised mice.

So instead of taking a pill or eating some exotic food, all you need to do is follow an exercise regime and you will longer  than your peers who do not.

The particular studies that these findings are being based on consisted of allowing mice to receive regular exercise in one group while in another group, they were allowed to lead a sedentary lifestyle. The mice that exercised, were much more lively , had more energy and were much more alert than the sedentary mice. They also looked more healthy as well with sleek shiny coats of fur compared to the group.

Exercising 3 times a week for perhaps 45 to 60 minutes a week is sufficient to achieve these stupendous results. Anti-aging effects of endurance exercise on the brain, skin, hair, gonads (ovaries and testicles), kidneys, spleen and liver were significant.

Real Life Example

Recently a friend of mind was talking about his father who had experienced a slight stroke, was hospitalized and then caught a disease while in the hospital. The net result was that he was in bed on his back for 3 months with no exercise at all while he recovered. He was then shipped to a long term care facility.

He had lost a great deal of muscle mass, and strength. He was lethargic and very little energy. Fortunately for him, his daughter in law was a former critical care nurse and new that she needed to get him up and walking.

They started slow with a walker, to the door of his room and back. This is really how bad he was. Later he progressed out the door and to the end of the hall, all of the time rebuilding his strength and increasing his heart rate just a little bit.
Read the rest of this entry »

Did you know that your risk of death rises steadily with every overweight pound you gain? This was confirmed on  a huge study funded by the National Institutes of Health . There are lots of reasons for death rates or probability for death rates to increase. We have all heard about smokers and that they tend to die about 5 years earlier on average than every one else who does not smoke. Being over weight can have the same effect or perhaps even more so.

Body Mass Index

Even if you don’t smoke and are in otherwise good health, your risk of death goes up 31% with every 5-point increase in BMI, a measure of body mass based on weight and height.  The normal range BMI is 22.5 to 24.9. The neat thing about BMI is that it accounts for height and if you are taller and carrying more weight, then your BMI is not going to be as high as you might expect.

Just being a little bit overweight increases death risk.

• A BMI of 25.0 to 29.9 increased death risk by 13%
• A BMI of 30.0 to 34.9 increased death risk by 44%
• A BMI of 35.0 to 39.9 increased death risk by 88%
• A BMI of 40.0 to 49.9 increased death risk by 251%

Those figures above are for women who do not smoke and who have no underlying disease. Men will have similar percentages. These numbers are really scary and if this does not kick start you into losing weight nothing will! Being overweight can cause all kinds of problems which may trigger mortality. Heart attacks and stroke, asthma, diabetes, liver issues and infections are just some of the problems that people who are overweight must contend with.

Shorter Life Span

It is possible that other diseases unrelated to being over weight could have an impact, however there just seems to be too much correlation based on various studies to not pay attention to some of these figures.

Most people have heard that smokers can expect a shortened life span due to long term smoking and second hand smoke. Now people who are considered obese can expect a shortened life span as well compared to people who have a BMI that is below 24.9. Some studies indicate that the impact can be as much as 4 years although this is only a guideline. For some people they may reduce their life span by much more than 4 years while others not so much. Either way it is a good reason to get in shape and lose weight.

What Is a Healthy BMI?

A person with a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is considered to be at a healthy weight. A person with a BMI of 25-29.9 is considered to be overweight. A BMI over 30 is considered obese. A BMI of 40 or above indicates that a person is morbidly obese. This can increases a person’s risk of death from any cause by 50% to 150%.

What does a BMI of 24.9 mean in terms of height and weight? Well if you are 5 feet 7 inches tall and weight 190 pounds you have a BMI of 29.8 which is considered overweight and just on the edge of being obese, which starts at a BMI of 30. Someone who is 6 foot 6 inches and weighs 190 pounds would only have a BMI of approximately 25.5, where as someone who is only 5 feet and 190 pounds is off the charts or greater than 37 in BMI terms.

You can look all of these terms and BMI indexes up on the internet and we encourage everyone to take a moment to consider what their BMI is and what they can do about it in terms of losing weight.

One word of caution. If you are an athlete and have lots of muscle with low body fat, BMI may give you an erroneous indication, since muscle weighs more than fat. Also if you are an older person with lean muscle mass and more fat, you might show a lower BMI when really you are overweight.

Waist Circumference is Another Indicator

If you have a higher BMI and your waste size is larger than 35 inches, this is a greater indicator of being at higher risk of heart disease and also diabetes. Men tend to store much of their excess fat around the waist and so this becomes a good indicator of how much you are at risk especially if your BMI is also high.

Imagine if you could extend your life by 4 or 6 years and be able to see your daughter married, perhaps hold your grand kids or do some of the things you always dreamed about in retirement. You can do all of these things or at least increase the probability that you will be able to if you lose weight and get your BMI and waist circumference in line with more normal levels for your height. Don’t wait, get a plan together and get started now!