Longer Life Possible By Practicing One or More Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors, CDC Finds
Four keys to longevity - not smoking, eating well, regular exercise, limiting alcohol
Aug. 23, 2011 Its not a miracle cure for aging but a new study by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention pretty
much nails down what aging studies have been finding for some time if you want to live longer dont smoke, eat healthy, exercise and drink
alcohol moderately. If you do them all it makes a gigantic difference.
But, people can live longer if they practice even just one of these healthy lifestyle behaviors, according to a the CDC.
Healthy
centenarians described as open and conscientious.
Second UGA study shows decrease in physical activity accelerates decline
in health - Dec. 1, 2010
During the study period, people who engaged in all four healthy behaviors were 63 percent less likely to die early,
compared to people who did not practice any of the behaviors.
Not smoking provided the most protection from dying from all of the causes examined.
If you want to lead a longer life and feel better, you should adopt healthy behaviors not smoking, getting regular
physical activity, eating healthy, and avoiding excessive alcohol use, said CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H.
People who engaged in all four healthy behaviors were -
● 66 percent less likely to die early from cancer,
● 65 percent less likely to die early from cardiovascular disease, and
● 57 percent less likely to die early from other causes compared to people who did not engage in any of the healthy behaviors.
The study, Low Risk Lifestyle Behaviors and All-Cause Mortality: Findings from the National Health and Nutrition
Examination Survey III Mortality Study, was published August 18 online by the American
Journal of Public Health.
Researchers analyzed data from CDCs National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III Mortality Study, a
mortality follow-up of NHANES III survey participants aged 17 years and older who were recruited from 1988 to 1994 and followed through 2006.
The researchers defined low-risk health behaviors as - > never smoking, > eating a healthy diet, > moderate intensity or vigorous intensity physical activity, and > moderate alcohol consumption.
Moderate alcohol consumption was determined using the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans: men should drink no more
than two drinks per day; women, one drink per day.
Among people in the CDC study, 47.5 percent had never smoked, 51 percent were moderate drinkers, 39.3 percent had a
healthy diet, and 40.2 percent were adequately physically active.
The percentage of people who reported low-risk behaviors did not differ significantly by gender. Mexican-Americans had
more healthy behaviors compared to whites and African-Americans.
The authors noted the challenges in encouraging a large percentage of the U. S. population to adopt a healthy lifestyle.
Although studies have shown only a small percentage of people have adopted all of these healthy lifestyle behaviors, significant progress has
been made in decreasing the rate of people who smoke.
This study adds to the mounting evidence of the substantial gain in life associated with healthy behaviors, and
underscores the need for the clinical and public health communities to work together to promote greater adoption of these behaviors.
Aug. 23, 2011 Its not a miracle cure for aging but a new study by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention pretty
much nails down what aging studies have been finding for some time if you want to live longer dont smoke, eat healthy, exercise and drink
alcohol moderately. If you do them all it makes a gigantic difference.
