Longevity : a healthy lifestyle can do to win 7 years

Deaurinko/epictura

Published the 22.07.2017 to 08: 45

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A healthy mind in a healthy body. This quote from the poem of Juvenal is again confirmed by a study published in Health Affairs. This work of the Max Planck Institute (Germany) and the university of Michigan (United States) show that people who do not smoke, are not obese and who consume a moderate amount of alcohol can expect to live more than the general population. Better, these years correspond to the years of life in good health.

The researchers analyzed the health data of 14 000 Americans aged 50 to 89 years, from 1998 to 2012. They focused on 3 risk factors of disease and premature death : smoking, obesity and alcohol consumption. This is the first time that a scientific study evaluating the impact of these 3 factors simultaneously. Usually, they are studied individually.

Live better longer

The scientists have noticed that these 3 unhealthy behaviors there was not the expectancy of life in the same way. According to their analysis, smoking is associated with premature mortality, while obesity is especially related to long period of illness. For its part, the excessive consumption of alcohol results in both years of sickness but also a shortened life.

Thus, depending on the mode of life, we find that men who have never grilled on a cigarette, consuming alcohol moderately, and who are of normal weight live on average 11 years longer than the obese men, smoking and drinking too much alcohol. Similarly, women who have adopted a healthy lifestyle and have a life expectancy in good health extended to 12 years. Overall, researchers estimate that adopting these healthy behaviors can bring 7 years of life.

Grandparents more in shape

“The improvements in medicine and technology have often been designated as the guarantors of life expectancy in good health, is Mikko Myrskylä, director of demographic research at the Max Planck Institute. We show that a healthy lifestyle, which costs nothing, is enough to allow individuals to live longer in great shape “.

For the authors, these results highlight the importance of focusing on prevention. The results all the more important that the society is ageing, think. The scientists point out, in effect, that older people in good health can continue to work longer, and play a key role in the company such as keeping small children or engage in associations.