Useful tips
Human life expectancy is constantly increasing. Some two hundred years ago, the average person's life was short and rather bleak. At that time, the average life expectancy did not exceed 37 years.
If we talk about our time, the living standards of modern people are very high, especially in developed countries. In many of them, the average life expectancy is much more optimistic, at about 79 years.
It is also estimated that about half a million people on our planet are 100 years old or more. Scientists still do not agree on the factors that influence the increase in human life expectancy, although they believe that it will continue to increase.
Some researchers are even more optimistic that the existence of an upper limit on life expectancy is not a mandatory law of nature. So we can live as long as we want.
However, it is unlikely that human immortality is something achievable and real. But it is quite possible to increase your life expectancy if you follow the following ten practical tips.
How to live longer
Red hot pepper
It's no big secret that there's a link between nutrition and life expectancy. Unfortunately, there is often a tendency that the healthier the food, the less attractive it is for its taste.
However, there is one very striking exception to this rule — red hot pepper. This product is definitely not boring, considering all its variations, from the prosaic jalapeno to the brain-melting hottest pepper in the world called the Carolina Reaper.
And although not everyone likes red hot peppers, there is good news for those who like to “add pepper” to their lives. A large-scale study was conducted in China, involving almost half a million people.
The results showed that people who ate spicy foods six or even seven times a week reduced their combined risk of sudden death by 14 percent. Scientists came to the same conclusion as a result of a similar study (perhaps not so large-scale) conducted in the United States.
Despite this, you will not find red hot peppers on the list of so-called superfoods that contain a maximum of vitamins and beneficial nutrients. Perhaps this is due to the presence of an alkaloid such as capsaicin in hot peppers.
The hotter the red hot pepper, the higher its capsaicin concentration. And when it comes to the hottest peppers, special care should be taken, as their use can cause not only heart palpitations and vomiting, but also in some cases fatal outcome.
Short-term fasting
A healthy diet is an important part of a long life, but how often we eat is just as important. The results of a recent study conducted by Harvard University specialists prove that short-term fasting can stop the aging process.
When our body is short of food, it switches to what is known as survival mode. During this period, the body does not care so much about how its liver, kidneys and other systems function, so it spends most of its energy and resources on servicing the digestive system.
The theory says that when the hunger strike ends, our body begins to repair itself. In the process of this recovery, old cells are replaced with new, more viable versions.
There is even evidence that fasting, combined with chemotherapy, helps kill cancer cells in experimental mice. However, more research is needed to study the effectiveness of this treatment in humans.
And while many studies are discovering the benefits of short-term fasting, it is not good for everyone (and even dangerous for some people). Therefore, the less extreme option associated with dietary nutrition remains effective, which allows you to reduce calories to a daily healthy minimum.
Young blood injections
Advances in modern medicine have played an important role in enabling people to live longer than before. Alas, people often come to these achievements through numerous experiments on various animals.
One of the most eerie examples of such experiments is so-called parabiosis, a phenomenon achieved when two animals are anatomically merged in such a way that they form a single system blood circulation.
Thus, the researchers were able to find out that the blood of a healthy young mouse has an amazing rejuvenating effect on older individuals. At the same time, brain functionality improves, tissue repair more quickly, and organs throughout the body begin to work more efficiently.
Thanks to parabiosis, it was possible to eliminate many of the effects of the harmful effects of age in mice. Some scientists believe that blood transfusion (blood replacement) may well lead to similar results in humans.
This theory is quite controversial in the scientific community, since science does not yet have conclusive arguments confirming its effectiveness in increasing life expectancy. However, there are many types of blood transfusion-based treatments that are quite successful.
Read also: Countries with the highest life expectancy
In 2017, a company from California, USA, called Ambrosia, offered people the opportunity to inject young blood. It was proposed to carry out this procedure for a fee of 8 thousand US dollars.
Not much time has passed, so it is too early to say how effective this operation was in prolonging life. Perhaps the effect of it will be completely reduced to zero… In any case, this is one of those procedures from this list that you are unlikely to be able to do on your own at home.
How to prolong life
The right length of sleep
The average person spends about a third of their entire life sleeping. At the same time, the final answer to the question of why our body needs it is still a mystery for researchers.
Of course, although the mechanisms of sleep are not fully understood and understood, we certainly know that sleep is essential for maintaining our mental and physical health.
Surprisingly enough, everyone needs about the same amount of sleep, and it turns out that too much sleep can do much more harm than normal lack of sleep.
Children and adolescents need more sleep; retirees need less sleep; and for everyone else, an average of seven seems to be the most appropriate hours every night.
As a rule, everyone who manages to constantly stick to this figure notes the extraordinary benefits of such a schedule for their health. Professor Matthew Walker from the University of California, USA, went a step further, saying that sleep is more important to maintaining good health than proper diet and exercise.
Some of the data is definitely astounding. The researchers found that the risk of mortality among people who sleep six hours a night or less is 12 percent higher. Perhaps even more surprising is that this risk increases for those who sleep nine hours a night or more.
Teeth cleaning with dental floss and brush
Dentists strongly recommend that their patients spend at least two minutes brushing our teeth in the morning and in the evening. Agree, this procedure does not require much time from our lives, however, it is believed that about a third of people, even in civilized countries, do not follow this rule.
Even more deplorable statistics are revealed when it comes to brushing teeth with dental floss. According to various sources, in the same developed countries, no more than 16 percent of people do this every day.
As you know, those people who really zealously maintain the health of their teeth and oral cavity in excellent condition are extremely rare to experience the phenomenon of tooth decay, periodontitis and so on.
However, these are not the only health benefits — there are even more amazing benefits. Research shows that there is a link between brushing teeth (both brushing and flossing) and a reduced risk of developing age-related dementia, lung diseases, and certain heart diseases.
It may come as some surprise that dental hygiene can have such a powerful effect on overall health; however, the reasons why this is really true are quite serious and quite logical.
When plaque forms around our teeth, this zone becomes an excellent breeding ground for many millions of bacteria. And if these bacteria manage to enter our circulatory system, they are able to seriously undermine our health.
Live where it is higher
With an average life expectancy of less than 53 years, the people of the Central African Republic of Chad have some of the worst life expectancy statistics in the world.
And it is not surprising that people who are extremely poor have a significant gap in life expectancy compared to much richer developed countries of the West.
However, it is really surprising that there is also a fairly significant difference in life expectancy among citizens of different developed countries. And this is despite approximately the same high standard of living and income.
A comprehensive thorough study of this issue, which took more than three decades, was conducted in all US states. The results were very interesting and contradictory.
For example, the average life expectancy of South Dakota residents is 66.8 years. Colorado residents had the longest life expectancy — in some regions of the state, it exceeded the life expectancy of people from Dakota by almost twenty years!
And although Colorado is a relatively wealthy state, which undoubtedly plays a role, it is by no means the most prosperous state in the country. It turns out that a number of other factors influence life expectancy.
As you know, Colorado is the tallest state in the United States, located at an average altitude of about 2073 meters above sea level. A few more studies were needed to convince scientists that the highlands are the most “healthy” to live in.
Low oxygen content is believed to prevent the development of certain types of cancer; this factor also has a positive effect on the functioning of the cardiovascular system, which significantly reduces risk of heart and vascular diseases.
There is no doubt that there are reasonable limits to this pattern; that is, living at extreme altitudes is almost impossible, and staying there for a long time leads to mountain symptoms diseases that include nausea, dizziness. This can sometimes lead to death.
How to slow down aging
Learning a second language
The human brain is probably one of the most complex structures in the universe—at least as far as science currently knows. It is sometimes said that if our brain were simpler, we would simply not be smart enough to understand how complex it is.
Science also knows that the brain reaches its peak efficiency around the age of 22, and after that this efficiency gradually decreases. Most people also experience irreversible physical changes in the brain as they age.
Fortunately, there are several ways to delay the decline in functionality. The process of learning a new language is one of the most effective ways to significantly slow down brain aging.
Numerous studies show that people who know two languages are significantly more resistant to Alzheimer's disease and senile dementia than those who know only one language and they speak only it all their lives.
And while the benefits of knowing two or more languages are more obvious to those who have studied them since early childhood, if you start learning an additional language as an adult or even older, it is also can stop brain aging.
Regular consumption of coffee
Coffee is one of the most popular drinks on the planet. The value of the global coffee market is about several trillion dollars a year (second only to oil turnover). Hundreds of billions of cups of coffee are drunk by people on the planet in one year.
And this is not bad, since there is quite clear evidence that regular coffee consumption can slightly increase our life expectancy. In particular, this is evidenced by the results of a study conducted by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.
According to the Agency, people who drink coffee on a regular basis show greater resistance to heart disease, and are also less likely to suffer from gastric diseases, intestinal tract.
Although there is a lot of controversy on this topic, it is still believed that three cups of coffee a day is the optimal amount of coffee that can increase your life expectancy by adding it for about nine minutes a day.
In fact, the true mechanism of exactly how drinking coffee benefits our health is not fully understood. However, it is known that the answer to this question is definitely not caffeine.
Research results show that there is no particular difference in the effect on our health due to whether we drink decaffeinated coffee, natural coffee or instant coffee. In any case, this is good news for all coffee drinkers who have been frightened by the drink's potential health problems for years.
Maintain social activity
Any study of the topic of human life expectancy is fraught with various difficulties. Human beings lead quite complicated lives. And a huge number of different factors influence the duration of this life.
In addition to each individual's lifestyle, there are numerous genetic factors. Sometimes it can be extremely difficult to determine what exactly is the cause and what is the effect.
However, it should be said that there is one very variable factor that has repeatedly proven its importance as one of the most important factors affecting human life expectancy.
As you know, a person is a social creature. There is overwhelming evidence that people who regularly maintain close contact with their loved ones and friends are far more likely to live longer than singles.
In fact, it is a fact that social interaction is essential for mental health. For example, solitary confinement causes such significant harm to a person that some experts demand its prohibition, classifying it as nothing more than torture.
Read also: Human immortality is not science fiction! Arguments from science
An active social life brings real physical benefits, regulating blood pressure and strengthening the immune system. This effect can be so strong that, according to a study in 2008, its benefits are comparable to the benefits received by the body of a smoker who quit this habit.
Adopt a pet
The famous French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre once said that hell is different people. For those who agree with Sartre's statements, but are acutely aware of the benefits of social interaction for life expectancy, there is an excellent alternative.
Numerous studies suggest that pet owners live longer and healthier lives than other people.
In all fairness, it should be noted that this is not such a surprising fact. Responsible dog owners who take regular walks with them are known to benefit as much as those who exercise regularly.
However, not everything can be explained by additional physical activity, as not only dog lovers reap the positive health and life benefits of interacting with their pets.
For example, cat owners are also less likely to suffer from problems related to blood pressure disorders. According to a study by specialists from the Stroke Institute in Minnesota, USA, such people are three times less likely to have heart attacks.
And even animals that are definitely not cute and fluffy (turtles, lizards) also benefit the health of their owners. There is evidence that even the usual sight of swimming fish in an aquarium can lower blood pressure and regulate heart rate.