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From time immemorial, a recurring thought in the mind of humans, from the most significant rulers to the humblest of ordinary people, has centred around how to increase life expectancy. The question of how to increase your longevity is an ever-relevant one. Let us, without much ado, look at what you should do and what you should avoid so you know how to improve your life expectancy without having to set out on a voyage to find the proverbial fountain of youth.
How To Increase Life Span?
While no hard and fast rule will guarantee the delivery of a fool-proof answer to your question – “How can I increase my life expectancy?” There are specific steps to follow to ensure that your body is healthy and that you are on the correct path on your quest of knowing how to increase your life expectancy. It seems that the advice given by our parents – eating well, exercising regularly, getting sufficient sleep and keeping away from bad habits was indeed the apt answer to how to increase life expectancy, as we will read below:
1. Regular Physical Exercise
Regular physical exercise in your most convenient form is the most important way to stay active and healthy. As you grow older, your body changes naturally, and you may face a reduction in energy, gradual loss in mass of muscles and muscles overall and aches and pains in your joints. Due to these conditions, you may feel tempted to move to a sedentary lifestyle. However, giving in to these conditions will increase the risk for you to suffer from diseases and disabilities and even face an untimely death. Any form of physical exercise appropriate for your physical condition and age, be it walking, stretching exercises, jogging, running, swimming, weight training or playing your favourite sport, will all promote healthy aging and provide the most essential response on how to increase life span. Do you know how physical activity increases life expectancy? Regular exercise brings forth several benefits, including the following:
- Arresting the decline in VO2 max, your maximal oxygen consumption level
- Reduced blood pressure
- Reduced systemic vascular resistance
- Preservation of lean body mass
- Decreased fat deposits
- Increased HDL cholesterol levels
- Reduced triglyceride levels
- Increased mineral content in bones
- Improved basal metabolic rate
- Increased muscle strength
- Increased cognitive functioning, etc.
2. Following a Healthy Diet
A healthy, well-balanced diet goes a long way in providing a solution to how life expectancy can be increased. Eating well is very important to the central question of how to increase the life expectancy of ourselves. A diet that is antioxidant-rich and contains anti-inflammatory polyphenols goes a long way in preventing chronic diseases and conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, and cancer.
You will find below a diet showing you how to increase the longevity of life:
- A vegetarian diet rich in legumes and grains or also in fish if you are a pescatarian
- Eat more raw fruits and vegetables.
- Get around 30 % of your calorie intake from vegetable fats from nuts, coconuts, olive oil and avocado.
- Follow a diet low yet sufficient in protein until age 65, and then reduce your protein intake to moderate levels.
- Consume low levels of foods rich in sugar or refined carbohydrates.
- Avoid red meat and processed meats.
- Consume low levels of dairy foods and avoid processed dairy products
- Consume limited quantities of white meat.
Fasting in the following forms is advised for you:
- Follow a cycle of 12 hours of eating and 12 hours of fasting in a day
- Maintain around three cycles of a 5-day fasting-mimicking, water-based diet in a year
- Periodic fasting between 18 and 70 may help regulate blood pressure and total cholesterol levels and reverse insulin resistance and inflammation
>> Also Read: Wellness Tips for a Healthy Lifestyle
3. Reduction of Weight and Maintaining a Healthy BMI
Another definite answer to your question on increasing your life expectancy is to shed excess body weight. Obesity is one of the biggest obstacles to extending life expectancy. The World Health Organisation (WHO) calls obesity a condition of depositing excess fat in the body. Causes of obesity are the lack of balance between the intake of energy in your diet and the expending of your energy in the form of physical activities. The deposits of excessive fats in your body lead to obesity.
When your intake of calories is more than what your body can immediately process, these calories are converted into triglycerides and stored in your fat cells. High triglycerides indicate that your body stores more fat than it requires, which may lead to obesity.
Body Mass Index, or BMI, measures obesity. So, what is BMI? The relation between your weight and height calculates your BMI.
BMI = Weight (in Kgs) / Square of your height in meters (m2)
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), a person with a BMI of greater than or equal to 25 is overweight, and a person with a BMI of greater than or equal to 30 is classified as obese.
There are three types of obesity concerning your Body Mass Index (BMI):
- BMI is between 30.0 and 34.9 – Class 1 (risk of obesity low)
- BMI is between 35.0 and 39.9 – Class 2 (risk of obesity moderate)
- BMI is equivalent to or above 40 – Class 3 (risk of obesity high)
Control of BMI is critical in knowing how to increase your life span.
4. No Smoking and Zero Use of Tobacco
Tobacco is the biggest obstacle you will face in the answer to your question – “How to increase my life expectancy”. Smoking causes grievous harm to your body, causing several diseases, including the following:
- Cancer
- Heart disease
- Stroke
- Lung disease
- Diabetes
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), including chronic bronchitis and emphysema
It is best if you have been able to keep away from smoking and all forms of tobacco consumption in its entirety in knowing how to increase longevity. Still, if you are a smoker, you need to quit immediately to reap benefits starting from the moment you kick the habit, difficult as it may seem to be. Giving up smoking and all forms of tobacco is vital to knowing how to increase human lifespan.
The benefits of quitting smoking show up immediately and extend for a long time. Some of them are as follows:
- Within 6 hours, your heart rate decreases, and your blood pressure stabilises.
- Within one day, your blood will almost be free of nicotine, and the concentration of carbon monoxide in your bloodstream will drop, allowing oxygen to reach your muscles and heart more easily.
- Within one week, your senses of smell and taste may improve
- Within three months, your coughing and wheezing will be reduced, and your immunity and circulation to your hands and feet will improve. Your lungs will be enhanced by removing mucus and the accumulated tar and dust
- Your stress levels will reduce within six months, and you will stop developing phlegm while coughing
- After one year, the health of your lungs will improve. You will find breathing to be easier than if you had kept smoking.
- Your risk of heart disease will reduce significantly within two to five years. This is a continuous process, with the risk further decreasing over time
- Within five years, the risk of cervical cancer in a woman will be at the same level as compared to someone who never smoked
- After 10 to 15 years, the risk of lung cancer for you will be half of that of someone of a similar age who continues to smoke
- After 20 years, the risk of heart attack and stroke for you will be comparable to that of a person who has never smoked.
Fun fact: Did you know, quitting smoking and tobacco use can help you easily avail health insurance benefits.
5. Keep Your Mind and Brain Active
As they say, an idle mind is the devil’s workshop. This is also true if you want to know, “How can I increase my longevity?” Keeping your brain active keeps deadly degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and dementia away. Keep yourself informed and initiate daily meaningful conversations to keep your mind and brain sharp.
6. Get Regular Medical Check-Ups Done
Another critical part of extending your lifespan is getting regular medical check-ups. Do not neglect the slightest of syndromes, as they may escalate into something serious and life-threatening.
Care Health Insurance has some great policies like Care Supreme, Care Advantage and Care Senior, which provide regular and periodic health check-ups, online e-consultations, OPD care, etc., and other industry-leading features at affordable premiums. Make use of the features and benefits of these plans so you know how to promote longevity.
7. Drink in Moderation Only if You Do Drink Alcohol
If you do drink, do so in moderation. Men should restrict their alcohol intake to 2 units a day and women to 1 unit per day. Sticking to these limits is critical to improving life expectancy. In the Indian context, drinking alcohol anyway is taboo, and it is best to avoid it altogether to improve longevity.
Conclusion
Now you know your answer to how a healthy lifestyle increases life expectancy. Age well, and do not adopt sedentary and unhealthy habits. The secret to a long life is more in your control rather than genes. Follow good habits and enjoy a long life.
Disclaimers: All plan features, benefits, coverage, and claims underwriting are subject to policy terms and conditions. Kindly refer to the brochure, sales prospectus, and policy documents carefully.
