The top 6 things to increase your chances of living into your 90’s. They’re going to surprise you!
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Do you have what it takes to live into your 90’s? A good question, right? Well, believe it or not, you may be closer than you think. Maybe not to 90+, but to having what it takes to get there. 60 minutes recently did a segment about the 90+ Study, a study of 1600 people who are over 90 years young, some of whom have become centenarians.
Dr. Claudia Kawas, MD, a neurologist at the University of California at Irvine has been working with this group of retirees since 2003. She found an immense amount of information taken in the early 1980’s from people at a retirement home called Leisure World. This same area is now the city of Laguna Woods, California. It’s still a retirement town, but they are “active people” and they’re loving their community.
The nurses and doctors, back in the 1980’s gathered information from over 14,000 patients. They collected data on diet, exercise, social habits, medication, vitamins and more. Dr. Kawas and her colleagues searched and found 1600 people from the study who are still alive and in their 90’s. Thanks to a grant from NIH, she has been putting together some amazing information that may be turning our idea of aging on it’s head.
The patients are seen every 6 months and they either come into the doctor’s office or the study team goes to them. There are physical fitness exams and cognitive exams. How quickly can you stand up and sit down 5 times was one test. Balancing on one foot was another. The patients are stronger than you might think. In fact, that’s one of the main things they have in common, daily exercise. During the cognitive exam, the team member would give a patient 3 words to remember and see if they could remember them a minute later. Not surprisingly, some forgot.
What we’ve learned from the study regarding Dementia and Alzheimer’s is that we don’t know very much. Dementia is typically diagnosed if a professional deems that 2 basic brain functions are failing. There is not a blood test or even a DNA test that confirms the presence of Dementia. Previous triggers turn out not to necessarily be present for people who have Alzheimer’s and vice versa. What we do know is that your risk of dementia doubles every year after the age of 65.
Of the participants, 80% of them are disabled and 40% of them do suffer from dementia. Both are more common in women than in men.
Now, our top 6 things that are most common among the oldest old:
- Non-smokers – seems obvious, but worth stating again. Smoking kills you early.
- Exercise daily – as little as 15 minutes per day. 45 minutes per day seemed to get the most benefit while 3 hours each day would shorten your life. It didn’t have to be vigorous either. Gardening and brisk walks were sufficient.
- Social activities – hang with your friends, it’s very important. That’s right, the old Bingo night is going to add a few years on your life.
- Alcohol – in moderation. A drink or two is fine on a daily basis according to the study. Most people seemed to gravitate toward wine, but it didn’t matter whether it was wine, beer or whiskey.
- Coffee – in moderation once again. 1-3 cups of coffee apparently helps you live longer, so buy your Starbuck’s stock now!
- Gain a little weight in your 70’s. Apparently those who were frail into their 80’s & 90’s didn’t live as long.
But that’s not it. What had no effect on lifespan? Eating desserts and taking vitamins. There is no evidence that doing either will add or take away years from your life. So, head over to Baskin ’n Robbins while you still can. Though I wouldn’t get your hopes up too high. As a health & wellness professional, I can tell you they’re going to update that portion of the study.
What about sex you ask? Well they didn’t. The study didn’t ask about the sex lives of the patients, yet when asked by Leslie Stahl of 60 Minutes, a bashful couple would only admit to “being affectionate.” But you could see that they were having fun, in whatever way they possibly could.
Photo Credit: Flickr.com/patrick