Longevity Lab
As I have gotten a little older, I have naturally been thinking a little more about longevity. Just how much more time do I have and or do I want? I think most people would say it depends especially on how healthy they are. Most of us do not plan to be infirm as we advance in age. I certainly do not want to be bed ridden etc. I think if I am reasonably healthy and vibrant, I want to live several more years and I want them to be active years for of life.
There is a lot of information about best practices and supplements that are supposed to help people live longer productive lives. It is sometimes overwhelming to digest all the information available. It is certainly difficult to know if the advice is good or is it just opinion.
There are examples of wealthy people spending large sums of money to slow down the aging process. I do not think you have to spend a lot of money to improve your odds of living longer and better. Like most things there is plenty of low hanging fruit.
My experience with many patients is that they would rather take a pill than do the work. It does feel like work sometimes but the benefits can be awesome.
Living a long vibrant life is predicated on a few common-sense things. One of the most important (and most difficult) things to do is to control your weight. The insurance actuarial tables are generally right; the skinnier you are, the longer you live. Our culture makes it even more difficult to maintain a healthy weight. More people are overweight and or obese than are at a healthy weight. The standard American diet is full of sugar and starches that create inflammation in our bodies that lead to all sorts of problems. It has been estimated that the average American consumes about 150lbs of sugar a year. Sugar and things that turn to sugar are the enemy. Our bodies literally become what we eat.
Another often overlooked issue is sleep. Our culture seemingly does not value 8 hours of sleep. Most people get less than 7 hours of sleep a night. Our bodies seem to do better with at least 8 hours of sleep. When we sleep our bodies are working on restoration and trash cleanup. When we do not get enough sleep, we do not get fully restored and the trash tends to build up. Insufficient sleep is a major risk factor for dementia.
Exercise is one of the best ways to improve your chances of having a long life full of energy. A body in motion tends to stay in motion. Maintaining muscle mass and cardiovascular fitness is essential to longevity. Less than 25% of Americans get the bare minimum of recommended amounts of exercise. Exercise has been shown to turn on one of the “longevity genes.”
The idea of having meaning and purpose in life is important for longevity. Everyone probably knows of someone who retired and went home and died shortly after retiring. Having purpose can be difficult to find especially after finding our identity in our work. When our work ceases, our purpose ceases. It should not and does not have to be that way. All of us have “purpose” in this life.
Maintaining good social connections is associated with longevity. Keeping family and friends close is important for our mental health and in turn our physical health. Dealing with stress in a healthy way can add years to our lives. Daily meditation has been shown to improve longevity.
These few things are not complicated but can be hard to live out. Maintaining a healthy weight and good nutrition are important for all aspects of our lives. My plan for the next few blogs is to do a deeper dive into these issues. I am also working on a program for weight loss that uses the Enneagram to improve your odds of success in this area. If you are interested in that plan please shoot me an email. I would love to share with you what I have. It is currently a work in progress.
Wishing you An Amazing Life,
Curtis Brown MD