Are you jealous of all those muscular midlife celebrities, like Davina McCall and Jo Whiley, with their flat stomachs, precision eating and curated wellness regimes? Good for them, but in the real world it can be difficult to find the time to do multiple weekly workouts or cook from scratch every day. That is why the latest scientific news about how you can live longer and healthier makes for great reading pleasure.
Experts say these and other small changes to your daily routine can make a big difference, from going to bed ten minutes earlier to swapping your bacon sandwich for a turkey wrap.
And as for workouts: there’s no need for a hardcore regimen to increase your chances of a longer, healthier existence. Research has shown that just 140 minutes per week of moderate aerobic activity (for example, a brisk 20-minute daily walk) reduces women’s risk of death by 18 percent. And women who did a single strength workout per week reduced their risk of death by 14 percent or more.
Presenter Davina McCall has previously opened up about her love of fitness to stay in shape
If it takes so little effort to stay alive, why stop there? There are plenty of quick, snappy ways to extend lifespan. Quitting smoking is an easy win – the charity Action on Smoking and Health cites research showing that quitting smoking at the age of 30, 40, 50 or 60 gives you ten, nine, six or three years of life expectancy respectively.
But this is almost too obvious. Make these six simple and surprising changes to help you live a longer, healthier life…
Go to bed ten minutes earlier
Research published in August this year found that people who slept more than an extra hour on Saturdays and Sundays were 19 percent less likely to develop heart disease than those who didn’t sleep in at all.
The study, which looked at data from more than 90,000 British adults over almost 14 years, also found that people who woke up early on weekends and got even less sleep than on weekdays were at the greatest risk of developing a heart disease. It also revealed that the health benefits of sleeping in were greatest among those who were sleep deprived – defined as having less than seven hours of sleep per night on average.
Meanwhile, other studies suggest that people who consistently get five hours or less sleep per night are at greater risk of dying from any cause (15 percent higher, one major study found).
So why wait until the weekend to increase your sleep quotient? Dr. Guy Meadows, sleep specialist and founder of The Sleep School, says: ‘Sleep is the most powerful health-promoting behavior known to man.’
“Sleep is the most important fundamental behavior for our long-term health,” says Dr. Guy Meadows. ‘So any extra sleep you get will have a big impact’
‘Because sleep is the most important fundamental behavior for our long-term health, any extra sleep you can get – which could be as little as ten extra minutes of sleep a day – will have a profound impact on everything from your blood pressure to your health. your heart health, your risk of diabetes, your risk of poorer mental health.”
Some of us, he adds, could improve our rest by simply revising unhelpful nighttime habits, like binging too much Netflix or scrolling through social media: “Whatever you do, it’s keeping you from getting the sleep you need.” you need.’
For others, the anxiety surrounding sleep keeps them awake. This can be addressed using a new behavioral therapy called Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). For further expert guidance, try the science-based app Sleep School: Insomnia Help, or Sleepio, an evidence-based sleep improvement app co-founded by sleep scientist Professor Colin Espie.
Tell yourself: ‘I am older – and wiser’
Yes, you can call yourself young, with studies showing that a positive attitude can add almost eight years to your life by slowing the rate of biological aging.
‘Positive thinking can add years to your life,’ says Dr Lucy Pollock, consultant geriatrician and author of The Golden Rule – Lessons In Living From A Doctor Of Aging. ‘If you have a positive attitude towards aging, you can add about seven and a half years to your life.’
It slows the rate of biological aging by reducing stress, which increases cortisol and blood pressure and causes heart disease.
Dr. Pollock adds that studies by Rose Anne Kenny, professor of medical gerontology at Trinity College Dublin, “show that if you think ‘as I get older, I get wiser’ or ‘I’ve weathered storms’ or ‘I’ve learned from experience ‘ or ‘I can improve my strength’ – you improve your physical aging.’
Put turkey in your sandwich instead of bacon
Dropping that bacon sandwich addiction could save your life. A report in the US journal Nature Food claims that sustained changes from unhealthy to healthy diets are associated with an increase in life expectancy of 10.8 and 10.4 years in 40-year-old men and women respectively.
“One important change to make is to replace processed meats – bacon, ham, sausages, pastrami, salami – with lean meats like turkey,” says Dr. Federica Amati, author of Every Body Should Know This: The Science Of Eating For A Lifetime Of Health, and chief nutritionist at science and nutrition company Zoe. “Or eat fried mushrooms on toast,” she suggests.
‘Processed meat is classified by the World Health Organization as a Class 1 human carcinogen. Remove it from your diet and you automatically reduce the risk of cancer and therefore of shortening your lifespan.’
Get up from your chair hands-free
Strength training is a must for a healthy, long life, says elite personal trainer Matt Roberts, founder of Evolution Healthspan Clubs. “A Harvard Medical School study found that strength training was associated with a 46 percent reduction in all-cause mortality,” he says.
A 2014 study found that people between the ages of 51 and 80 who could get up from sitting on the floor without using their hands were less likely to die within six years. Why? Researchers found that musculoskeletal condition was a significant predictor of mortality in this age group. So one more option… squats! Matt suggests a daily set or two (whether regular old squats, weighted squats, or single-leg squats). Or try sitting on a chair, using the strength of one leg – and stand up again. And don’t use your hands as leverage.
Trot up the stairs
A review of thirteen studies published in The Journal of Aging Research suggests that ‘regular physical activity is associated with an increase in life expectancy of 0.4 to 6.9 years.’
If you are inactive, do not be discouraged. “There’s no such thing as too little exercise,” says Dr. Pollock. ‘What makes the most difference are the people who do the least and do just a little more. It’s just a little extra going up and down the stairs, or standing a little extra while watching television.”
Eat five grams more fiber (that’s just half an avocado!)
Did you know that 95 percent of the UK population is deficient in fiber, with the recommended daily allowance being 30 grams? Experts say that even if your intake is 15 grams per day, you will see a significant reduction in health risks if you eat an additional 5 grams of fiber.
“There is some evidence that if you increase your fiber intake by five grams per day, you can reduce your risk of death by 14 percent,” says Dr. Amati. ‘This is because fiber is important for the health of the gut microbiome, which influences inflammation and immune system function and helps reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
“This is exactly the science I used to design Zoe’s Daily30+ – a plant-based nutritional supplement with 5 grams of fiber per serving,” says Dr Amati.
But, she adds, there are other options. Sprinkling two teaspoons of mixed seeds over your yogurt or oats, or eating half an avocado alongside your scrambled eggs, would also add five grams of fiber to your daily intake. The more we can add, the better!