8 Ways To Live Longer

According to iVillage.co.uk the website for women, life expectancy is rising steadily every year, with women living up to 79.9 on average, and men 75 years old compare to the fi ndings by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 1920 the average life expectancy was 54. Dying (pun intended) to find out what makes all the difference? Well, read on!

1: Don’t Sleep In
According to Forbes.com, an established American Business and Financial magazine, pressing the snooze button one too many times might bring more disastrous effect than just being late for work – it can cost you your life! A study in the Archives of General Psychiatry, US found that people who get only six to seven hours sleep a night live longer. People who sleep eight hours or more a night were shown to have a signifi cantly higher death rate. However, insomniacs and late night party goers shouldn’t rejoice because the research continues saying that those who sleeps less than four hours also increases death rates. The occasional sleep-in on weekends might be harmless but continuous sleep-ins are proven to be life threatening. So, the next time you are tempted to just laze about, think again!

2: Taking Medication
Netscape.com reported that there is a strong correlation between those who work long hours (long hours also tend to be associated with high stress jobs) and high blood pressure. Furthermore while you are stuck working all the time, you are not exercising, eating well, relaxing and spending time with your family. Thus, it’s no surprise to find those who spend most of their time stuck at the cubicle have unsatisfactory relationships especially in the romance department. All that will contribute to depression and feeling of loneliness so the old saying, ‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy’ has a lot of truth in it.

3: Half cup full all the way!
If you really want to live longer, you have to start with your attitude advices Dr. Toshihiko Maruta from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. In 2002, researchers of the clinic found that optimistic people decrease their risk of early death by 50 percent compared with those who leaned toward pessimism. “The exact mechanism of how personality acts as a risk factor for early death or poorer health is unclear. Most likely, it has to do with the fact that pessimists have an increased chance for future problems with their physical health and emotional stress – particularly depression. Yet another possibility could be more directly biological, like changes of in the immune system,” Maruta adds.

4 : Own a pet
Animal loverswill be happy to know that having a pet can add years to your life. People who own pets, especially dogs have been shown to be less stressed and require fewer visits to their doctors than nonowners. “The health effects seem to be very real and by no means mystical. Contact with companion animals triggers a relaxation response,” says Alan Beck, director of the Center for the Human Animal Bond at Purdue University. Rebecca Johnson, a professor of gerontological nursing at the University of Missouri, Columbia, agrees as she proved in her research that interaction with pet does, in fact reduce levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Finally, health researcher Erica Friedman (Public Health Reports in 1980) finds that the survival rates for heart attack victims who had a pet have been shown to be 12 percent longer than those who didn’t have one. Seems like a dog is really a man’s best friend, in more ways than one! A visit to the RSPCA anyone?

5 : Quit Smoking
This is not new but here it is again: Smoking is lethal. Middle aged men who are longterm, heavy smokers face twice the risk of developing more aggressive forms of prostate cancer than men who have never smoked, according to fi ndings from a study that appeared in the July 2003 issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention. Well, it is just as bad for women as explained by a recent study done by the Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, “Smoking is for all but some exceptional subjects incompatible with successful aging and compromises life expectancy even in extreme longevity.” Well, you heard it so stop today!

6 : Marry Well
No, we are not telling you to marry rich! Writer Karen Williamson explains in her article entitled, ’25 ways to live longer’, “Being happily married for a long time leads to greater life expectancy for both men and women. However, divorcing then remarrying actually increases the risk of dying prematurely, says a study in Health Psychology Journal.

7 : Body Postures
Netscape.com warns, ‘Avoid putting your body through too many physical strains over any length period of time. Sitting down can put more pressure on the back than standing up, and as more and more people are fi nding themselves seated at their computer desks for longer period of time this issue is becoming quite alarming. So, be sure to regularly sit up, walk or stretch out for a few minutes. So, getting up and walking to the pantry to make a drink can actually save your life! It doesn’t just have to involve sitting down either; consider sleeping arrangements as well; check out the number of pillows and be wary of bumpy mattresses.

8 : Chill Out
A study led by the Johns Hopskins University School of Medicine in 2002 found that men who were classifi ed as having the highest level of anger response to stress were over three times more likely to develop premature heart disease when compared to men who reported lower anger responses. Forbes.com adds that those with the highest level of anger response to stress were over six times more likely to have a heart attack by the age of 55. One possible explanation for these dramatic fi ndings is the correlation between anger and high blood pressure, a condition that commonly develops in highly stressed individuals. The lesson here is: Try as much as you can to let the unavoidable, everyday stresses roll off your shoulders. So, take a deep breath and stop stressing!