Blog

Jan 10

It always feels so validating when a major news service points to the same essential message as we do here. This time, it was the New York Times in their New Year's series on health and wellness, which featured a couple of articles (here and here but unfortunately both behind their firewall) covering the topic of how to live healthier for longer, with both scientific evidence and interviews with experts. 

In one article they pointed to a really cool study from last year which looked at the health records of nearly 1M US service veterans' to determine the full potential of a healthy lifestyle. That is, they looked at the number of years of life gained (on average) in those who followed an "ELEMENTS+ Lifestyle" throughout adulthood and found that the investment paid off in about 2 decades of extra years of life. Said another way, those who did the hard work of Move, Fuel, Recover, Endure, Connect (and stayed clear of unhealthy add-ons like alcohol, tobacco, and drugs) on average gained 2-3 years per habit resulting in 20 extra years for men and up to 24 extra years for women. Said yet another way, and although NYT was careful to point out their belief that "super agers" (those who will live to 90's and beyond) likely have some genetic advantage, stacking all the same habits resulted in enough years gained to get the chance to meet another generation of the people we care about most - pretty amazing stuff.

For those interested in the specific behaviors that scored points the authors described it as "adhering to a whole-food, plant-predominant eating pattern, having regular consistent physical activity, managing negative stress, not smoking, having restorative sleep, no excessive alcohol consumption, no opioid use disorder, and having positive social connections". Specifics can be found on pages 128 & 129 of the study.

In the second article, they describe the "7 Keys to Longevity" which...although didn't use the same exact terms certainly got close: 

1. Move More

2. Eat more Fruits & Vegetables

3. Get enough sleep

4. Don't smoke and don't drink too much

5. Manage chronic conditions (blood pressure, blood sugar, etc)

6. Prioritize relationships

7. Cultivate a positive mindset

There's really no surprise here, the evidence on each is overwhelming. However, since just knowing something to be true doesn't make it easy to turn into a lifelong habit, the question remains - where should we start?

One doctor quoted in the article said "Do some version of physical activity...if you can't do that, then focus on being positive". Researchers at The University of Iowa Health Center might agree. They surveyed 7,000 patients on their movement habits, which they called the "Exercise Vital Sign" by asking 2 simple questions between 2017 and 2022.

1 - On average, how many days per week do you engage in moderate to vigorous exercise (like a brisk walk)?" (0-7 days)

2 - On average, how many minutes do you engage in exercise at this level?

They found that those who reported physical activity that achieved guidelines (about the same as the amount advocated above) had significantly lower odds of nearly 20 different diseases in the future. Amazing.

However, while getting "out there" for a walk might be inviting when the weather is gorgeous, it's easy to find reasons not to during a cold blast like the one we've been facing in many of our territories. What then?

Well, according to a research team who published findings showing substantial effects on the second target area for 2025 we identified last week, the microbiome and metabolic health, the answer might be Elderberry juice. 

In a randomized, placebo-controlled trial, drinking 12 ounces per day for a week significantly improved the gut and metabolic health of those studied. While, not nearly as well-studied as the more common but similarly low-sugar, nutrient-dense blueberry (perhaps because eating elderberries raw can be poisonous), the results showed a double-digit blood sugar reduction, a nearly double-digit insulin reduction, a significantly improved biome, and even some evidence which suggested a better ability to burn fat as fuel.

There are only 355 days left in 2025, the time to return to the groove is now.

Have a great weekend,
Mike E.