Living Longer – Some How To’s

Your personal perception of just truly how healthy you are is one of the most accurate predictors of aging. Be honest now – how would you compare your own health to the health of others in the same age group?

- Poor – Fair – Good – Very Good – Excellent

Assuming we answered honestly, a Fair or Poor rating suggests that you’re 30 times more likely to die within the next 2 years than someone else whose health rating was better. Ouch! The point here, simply, is to make ourselves realize only we can control our health, because only you really knows how you feel. You may even admit that you’re doing things that undermine your long-term health expectations. We’re fortunate, though, because recent scientific findings strongly suggest we can, to a large extent, control our aging processes. But first, a re-thinking of what we think we know about getting older.

Scientists who have studied the numerous systems in the human body discovered that each process is, in essence, designed to perpetuate the human species. In other words, the evolutionary processes that have been occurring over the thousands of millennia prioritize the survival of your genes over the survival of your individual life. These systems are only designed to give you protection during your years of reproduction and child-rearing.

However, these systems that work extremely well during our reproductive periods start breaking down after that, and can actually start working against you (hence, the aging process). If we take a minute to look at aging through the lense of the gene instead of through our own myopic view, it begins to make sense. Instead of aging being a specifically designed process, it is instead just a natural by-product of the master plan of life.

Human bodies, as strong as they are, are also like everything else – they occasionally break. Whether it is an acute injury like a torn knee ligament, or just the normal wear and tear kind of breakage we experience over the years, the real factor in living longer is not so much avoiding injury (it is important, though!) as it is being able to rebound from it. Our bodies, then, are primarily designed to repair themselves as effectively and efficiently as they can.

If we consider your car’s lifespan to be similar to your own, we all know that a little preventive maintenance goes a long way to getting the most out of it. Aging occurs because our cells, over time, lose their ability to regenerate themselves. Because of what we now know about the scientific causes of aging, it’s more possible now than ever to do things that help boost their resilience. Another hundred thousand miles isn’t out of the question!

Our genetic makeup and internal cellular processes aren’t the only factors contributing to the aging process. Injuries that limit our mobility, how well we eat, and a stressful world also contribute to how well or how poorly we age. It’s said that the rate a person ages doubles every eight years. So this, then, is what we’re actually trying to influence – the rate at which we age.

Most people just assume that getting older is an unavoidable given, and that it’s best to just get used to the idea. New scientific research, though, is helping us find things that we can do to postpone – if not avoid – those dreary outcomes if we’re willing to nudge ourselves gently in the right direction. Addressing these weak areas can pay off in many more years of living, and it’s never too late to begin.

Today, the life expectancy for women is around 80 and around 75 for men. Because of what we now know, we can extend our lifespans by a good third; that means that a life of one hundred years old is truly possible. Follow these 3 critical steps – reduce your caloric intake, keep adding muscle, and sleep well – and you can effectively control over 75% of your aging process.

We need to change our perspective. Living longer isn’t about taking longer to die. It’s about being able to enjoy more moments in a longer, healthier life!

After having been the poster boy for obesity and most other bad health practices, Chuck Viccente now researches and writes about numerous health and fitness topics such as aging, prostate enlarged symptoms, and how to build muscle how the experts suggest.