The Keys to Longevity

Everybody wants to live a long time, right? Even the aliens wished each other could “Live long and prosper.” Over in another article on Nutrisystem’s The Leaf, we offer a look at 5 Things Healthy People Know. There’s healthy, and then there’s longevity. We did a little research and came up with some of the things people who live a long time have in common.

They’re Conscientious. You’d think that people who live a long life are relaxed and mellow, but it turns out that the personality type most frequently seen among the long-lived is the slightly obsessive, well-organized.

They Chose Their Parents Well. Grandparents, Too. Genetics matter a lot if you want to live a long time. Longevity is a heritable trait, so choose wisely.

They’re Educated. This is kind of an uber-trait, because higher levels of education tend to help people rank more highly in all kinds of measurements. The CDC reports that people with a bachelors degree live nine years longer than those who don’t graduate high school. The most likely explanation is that higher education levels leads people to make better decisions.

They Have Friends. People who live long lives report having wide social networks and active social lives. Researchers think that frequent contact leads to activity, even if it’s just getting out of the house to visit a friend.

They Exercise. Nothing crazy here. You don’t need to be an ironman. But the long-lived report that regular motion and activity is an integral part of their lives.

They Don’t Sit. We took this one hard. Turns out that sitting around all day is one of the worst things you can do if you want to live long. A study in 2011 reported that every hour of TV watching for people over the age of 25 lead to a 22-minute decline in life expectancy.