WHO says you need to wait till you’re older to start thinking about ageing well?
It’s never to early to start implementing longevity-boosting habits into your daily routine.
It’s never too early to start thinking about ageing well – taking care of your skin and your heart are major components of that
From subtly switching up your diet to making sure you’re getting more bang for your buck when you do work out, experts have shared simple things you can start doing in your 20s and 30s in order to live longer.
Even something as easy as wearing sun cream daily could help you live longer, they longevity experts argued.
Here are five simple habits you can pick you now that could see you living to the ripe old age of 100.
1. Eat your way to a long life
Eating a Mediterranean diet could add years to your life experts sayGetty Images
It’s not the first time a Mediterranean diet has been touted for its health benefits.
Laden with fruits, veg, olive oil and fish, following this diet could add years to your life, a 20-year study conducted by researchers at the University of Barcelona suggested.
Meanwhile, researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital also found that sticking to a Mediterranean diet can boost longevity, as it features antioxidant ingredients with anti-inflammatory properties.
Registered dietitian Clare Thornton-Wood sided with this research too.
Speaking to Business Insider, she called this famed diet “one of the best eating patterns to consider from a longevity and anti-ageing perspective”.
It’s worth noting that Mediterranean diets also feature leaner varieties of meat eaten in small amounts – with research linking high consumption of red and processed meat to bowel cancer.
But she advised adding a couple extra ingredients to your meals in the form of fermented foods, as they can promote healthy gut bacteria and boost your mental health and mood.
She recommended having at least one fermented food – such as kefir, sauerkraut, or kimchi – a day, and opting for wholegrain carbohydrates such as brown rice and or pearl barley.
The dietitian also advised you cut down on sugary or ultra-processed foods.
Studies have linked ultra-processed food – which is low in fibre, high in sugar or salt and packed with additives – with high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes.
But aside from lowering your risk these serious health conditions, Clare said avoiding sweet and processed ingredients could also help your skin and teeth.
Having poor oral health as you get older can become a burden and it can make eating more difficult.
But on top of that, having bad teeth has been linked to a higher chance of developing complications like angina, heart failure or heart attacks.
2. Remember the five workout pillars
GettyIncorporating different kinds of workouts into your routine can ensure you’re getting the most out of your exercise[/caption]
It’s easy to start moving less as we age, but implementing the habit of working out consistently in your 20s and 30s could set you up for life.
Whatever your age, personal trainer and sports scientist Luke Worthington told Insider that about five ‘fitness pillars’ we’d all do well to remember to get the most out of our exercise:
Strength
Cardiovascular fitness
Mobility
Body composition
Emotional well-being
We want to try and cover all five of these aims, the personal trainer said.
Gaining strength through resistance training becomes particularly important after our 30s, which is when we start to lose muscle due to age.
Building muscle before we hit that mark might also slow the rate at which we lose it later, Luke added. Another benefit of weight training is that it minimises loss of bone density, which can lead to osteoporosis and increase the risk of falls and breaks as we age.
A useful way to get ‘bang for your buck’ with working out is to do compound exercises that use several parts of your body at once, the trainer said.
These include squats, lunges, dead lifts and push ups.
If you’re already active and have the time to dedicate to exercising, Luke recommended you aim to accomplish the following each week:
Two to three resistance training workouts
One higher intensity cardio session such as tennis, boxing, or dance
One workout mobility and motor control-focused workout, such as reformer pilates, yoga, or barre
One or two lower intensity cardio workouts, such as sessions on a bike, elliptical, or climber
But at the end of the day, it’s the moving the counts so don’t worry if you can’t do all these different workouts in a week.
Just do what you have time for and what makes you feel good.
Research has shown that walking briskly for just 11 minutes a day can slash your risk of an early death by 23 per cent.
3. Put your heart health first
GettyGiving up smoking is one of the best things you can do for your heart health[/caption]
Preventative cardiologist Dr Nicole Harkin also weighed into what habits we can implement earlier in our life to live longer.
She explained: “The choices and lifestyle habits you develop now can make a big impact on your heart health in the future.
“In particular, if you have a strong family history of heart disease, it’s important to lay the foundation for a proactive heart health plan now.”
Cardiovascular disease – which affects the heart or blood vessels – is one of the the main causes of death and disability in the UK, but it can often largely be prevented by leading a healthy lifestyle, the NHS said.
One of the easiest things you can do is get your blood pressure checked in your 20s and 30s – you often won’t be able to spot deadly high blood pressure without a check, but the condition can increase your risk of serious conditions like heart disease, heart attacks and strokes.
You can get a blood pressure check for free in pharmacies in England if you’re 40 and above and haven’t already been diagnosed with high blood pressure.
Getting at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise weekly or 75 minutes of intense exercise can also help protect your ticker, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, Joanne Whitmore, said.
She also recommended keeping your stress levels down where possible.
On top of that, giving up smoking is the single most important thing you can do for your heart health, the heart specialist added.
But you can also make small changes like taking the stairs instead of the lift or leaving your desk to have a quick walk every hour.
4. Take care of your skin
GettyWearing sunscreen daily is one of the best things you do for ageless skin and to slash your risk of cancer[/caption]
Something as small as putting on sun cream daily – and especially on sunny days – can go a long way in protecting you from skin cancer, which kills thousands of Brits yearly.
It was reported this year that melanoma cases had reached record highs in the UK and are expected to double again by 2040.
And though non-melanoma cancers – which include squamous and basal cell carcinoma – are considered less dangerous than melanoma, recent research has shown that non-melanomas now kill more people worldwide as they’re so common.
Board certified dermatologist, Dr Charles Puza recommended you slap on sun cream daily.
This, along with putting on retinoids at night and using alpha hydroxy acids regularly, makes up the “three pillars of anti-ageing“, he said.
In terms of lifestyle, eating a balanced diet, drinking plenty of water, and getting seven to nine hours of sleep a night is beneficial to your skin, Dr Puza added.
5. Protect your brain
GettyConsistently getting enough sleep can boost your brain health long term[/caption]
Taking care of your brain can sound like no mean feat, but doing many of the activities already listed above can actually be super beneficial.
Dr Dale Bredesen, a neuroscience researcher at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging in California said improving brain health is tied to boosting the health of your whole body.
Your diet can play a large role, so he recommended eating lots of plants – especially cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and kale – and minimising your intake of ultra-processed foods.
Getting enough exercise and sleep can also give your brain a boost.
As can keeping “cognitively stimulated“, which can mean having hobbies and taking on new challenges like learning a language, Dr Bredesen added.