Health news, tips and features: Healia Health Blog

January 11th, 2008

Healthy Choices Can Add 14 Years to Your Life

Health News posted 4 years ago by The Healia Team

Adopting four healthy habits (regular exercise, healthy eating, not smoking, and not drinking) can help you live longer—14 years longer—according to a report published this week in the Public Library of Science Medicine journal.

This research is an important piece of work which emphasizes how modifying just a few risk factors can add years to your life - Dr. Tim Armstrong, a physical activity expert at the World Health Organization.

The 11-year study examined 20,200 healthy men and women aged 45 to 79. Between the years 1993 and 1997, study participants completed a health questionnaire with a clinic nurse. Participants scored one point for not smoking, one point for regular physical activity, one point for eating five servings of fruits and vegetables a day, and one point for moderate alcohol intake.

The researchers tracked deaths from all causes through the year 2006, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and respiratory diseases. Nearly 2,000 participants died during the study. Researchers concluded that participants who scored four points were four times less likely to die than those who scored zero.