How To Live Longer

This is an article from ‘Men’s Magazine’. I am sure the contents apply to women too. :-)

Men should realise that they can add a few years to their lives just by following a few simple rules, an article in Men’s Health magazine pointer lately:

Choose salad over soup:
Italian researchers found that eating just once cup of raw vegetables daily can add two years to your life. Raw is better because can deplete up to 30 per cent of the antioxidants in vegetables.
            And don’t worry about having it with salad dressing because the fat in it will boost your body’s absorption of certain nutrients.

Lose that fat, make a date with your mate:
University of Alabama researchers discovered that maintaining a body-mass index of 25 to 35 can shorten your life by up to three years. Excess body fat raises your risk of diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and colon cancer.
            There’s no way out but to exercise. And rope in the wife or girlfriend because a Duke University study shows that sedentary men are 50 percent more likely to work out three times a week if their partners participate.

Go nuts:
Researchers at southern California’s Loma Linda University tracked the lifestyle habits of 34,000 Seventh-Day Adventists – a population famous for its longevity – and discovered that those who snacked on nuts five days a week lived 2.9 years longer. Choose your nuts wisely, though. Check out calorie and nutrient contents on the Net.

Friends forever:
In a study of people in their 70s, Australian researchers found that those with the largest network of friends had the longest lease on life.
            If you are an average Joe, it could add seven years to your life. Friendship provides more protection than peril. So stay in touch with your old pals. And it’s never too late to make new friends.

There is life after retirement:
Make that your mantra. In a Yale University study of older adults, people with a positive outlook on the ageing process lived more than seven years longer than those who felt doomed to deteriorating mental and physical health. And one of the best ways is to volunteer for a cause you’re passionate about; selfless actions can put a positive spin on life and distract from unhealthy obsessing, reports a study in Psychosomatic Medicine.