Researchers identify eight habits that can help you live more than 20 years longer -TGN

Researchers have identified eight habits that can help you live more than 20 years longer.

One study identified eight factors that have the greatest impact on longevity: being physically active, not smoking, coping with stress, eating a good diet, not binge drinking regularly, not having an opioid addiction, sleeping well, and having positive social relationships.

Men who adopt all those habits by age 40 can live 24 years longer compared to men who don’t, while women with the habits can live 21 years longer.

Researchers drew their conclusions from data from more than 700,000 Americans who were part of the Veterans Affairs Million Veteran Program.

The study found that low levels of physical activity, opioid use and smoking had the greatest impact on longevity and were associated with a 30-45% higher risk of death.

Stress, binge drinking, poor nutrition and poor sleep were all associated with about a 20% increased risk of death.

Xuan-Mai Nguyen, a health scientist at the Department of Veterans Affairs, said: “We were really surprised by how much could be gained from adopting one, two, three or all eight lifestyle factors.

“Our research results suggest that adopting a healthy lifestyle is important for both public health and personal well-being.

“The earlier the better, but even making a small change in your 40s, 50s, or 60s is still beneficial.”

The researchers say their findings, which have not been peer reviewed, highlight the role of lifestyle factors in contributing to chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease that lead to premature disability and death.

The research was presented at Nutrition 2023, the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition.