Before I dive into this topic, a bit of trivia for you. Do you know why the famous Blue Zones, where people live a long time, are called Blue Zones? It is because the researchers looking at this phenomenon used a blue pen to circle these areas on a map! We could easily have been talking about Yellow Zones.
Do you want to live to be 100? When I’ve asked this to people many say no, usually because they see themselves as frail, immobile and no longer independent. If you’ve read my previous articles you will know that my passion is to get people fitter, stronger and healthier, so that they can live longer and, just as importantly, live healthier.
How do you envisage your last decade of life? In a care home? At home but waiting for a carer to turn up? Or will you still be walking to the shops, playing with your grandchildren in the park or perhaps doing a parkrun? The choices you make today will influence this.
What do you need to do to live to 100 and stay healthy and independent? Choosing your parents is critical, but that horse has bolted for us. Regarding genetics, I like the phrase I heard recently, “genetics loads the gun, but lifestyle pulls the trigger”. You do still have control. Let’s now look at the main lifestyle factors that you have control over.
Sleep is often overlooked but is likely to be the easiest thing for us to address. Sleep is crucial for allowing our body, including our brain, to repair itself. There are numerous studies that show that getting the right amount, and quality, of sleep benefits heart health, reduces obesity and lowers the risk of dementia. Who would not want that? The recommended amount of sleep varies per person but it is between six and nine hours a night, most nights, not just weekends. How much do you get?
Nutrition is something we are all aware of and mostly know what we need to do. But many modern foods are ultra-processed in a factory, designed to be addictive and cheap. It is often harder and more expensive to take the healthier option. Nutrition is a huge topic and I’ll discuss this in more detail another time.
Exercise is the third of my four areas. Most centenarians have lived an active life, you will not have heard any of them saying their secret to a long life was never getting off the sofa! Our ancestors would have walked 10,000 steps a day and also stayed strong with foraging. Strength is something that is becoming more recognised as being important, you can easily lose your independence once you get frail.
Last, but just as important, is social interaction. We are a social species, even those people that profess to not wanting much social contact. It surprised me to learn that loneliness is a bigger factor than obesity for an early death. Interacting with young people is also recognised as being beneficial.
It can feel overwhelming considering all of this and we often put it off until the tomorrow that never comes. But even little steps can make a difference, if you know how to start. If I had to choose one thing for you to start on it would be sleep, it costs nothing and is probably the easiest to address.