How Long Will You Live?

I found an interesting longevity calculator from Northwestern Mutual Life. Naturally they make more money if their policy holders live longer! But using the calculator was an interesting experience for me. Three modest changes in the assumptions led to an 8 year increase in my life expectancy—from 83 (what I am doing right now) to 91 years (three modest changes). What is good about the calculator is that you can contemplate changes and see how it affects your life expectancy.

Chose Your Buffet Foods Wisely! One category I played around with was weight. Weight does make a difference, but not as much as you would think. The difference between 235 and 200 in my life expectancy was only one year. This fits in well with other reading I have done. I think that the calculator assumes you are not diabetic. If you are, then the calculations would not be accurate, or are a general average. The main advantage in weight control is avoiding type 2 diabetes—a sure life expectancy reducer. This is why I plan to continue to lose weight. Not the fact that my High School reunion is on my mind! I have always had blood sugar problems, and it would be very easy for me to become diabetic if I am not careful.

Another category that I adjusted was food. Even though the suggested 5 fruits and vegetables daily is relatively easy, I doubt I am doing it. This makes a big difference in life expectancy—three more years. Personally I am close to this, 3 to 4 vegetable servings a day. How do you get to this goal and even surpass it? A large salad every day would be at least 2 servings of vegetables, maybe three depending on how you made it and not using iceberg lettuce too often. A serving of broccoli is 1/2 cup. So two servings is relatively easy to do. Remember that bread, potatoes and rice are not vegetables! I blogged previously about a woman who reversed MS by eating her vegetables!

Exercise by walking four times a week for 30 minutes added 5 years to my life expectancy. Exercising vigorously added only one more year to that total. This is because of the law of diminishing returns. Another way of looking at it is that the benefits of exercise are a bell curve with a rather steep curve. In other words, the benefits for even a modest increase in activity are substantial, but very rapidity the benefits of additional exercise decline. Too much exercise may even reduce life expectancy.

So if you want to live years longer, and have more “life in your years," (although this is a cliché, it is a true cliché ) imagine what your mother might say about your current lifestyle. You know what she will say: Turn off the TV, get off the couch and go outside and play, and eat your vegetables.