How to add years to your life

Here are five steps to assess your health status and possibly add years to your life:

1. Know your family history. Your genes play a major role in determining your lifespan. Having parents or grandparents above the age of 80 is a big plus factor. Moreover, if you know what diseases run in your family, then you will know what to guard against. For example, if you have a family history of heart disease or stroke, then be careful with your lifestyle choices. Quit smoking and don’t overeat. Get a checkup early and ask your doctor about preventive medicines like aspirin.

If you have a history of cancer in the family, then have a regular screening test like a mammogram or breast ultrasound to detect breast cancer, colonoscopy to detect colon cancer, or chest X-ray for lung cancer. Investigating your family history can give you a clue on what to watch out for in the future.

2. Know your lifestyle risks. When a doctor sees a patient for the first time, he immediately assesses the patient’s lifestyle and habits. Is the patient a smoker, an alcoholic, or a workaholic? Is he overweight? Does his face have a bright, healthy glow? Is he breathing heavily? As the doctor interviews the patient, he will look for unhealthy habits that can decrease a person’s lifespan like smoking, heavy drinking, drug abuse and high-risk sexual behavior.

On the other hand, doctors will also look for positive traits that promote good health, such as a healthy diet of mostly fish, fruits and vegetables. Moreover, a balanced work and family life, and adequate amounts of sleep and rest are all positive factors.

In short, try to increase the pluses in your life and decrease the minuses. For example, studies show that cigarette smoking decreases your lifespan by an average of six years while healthy eating increases your lifespan by three years. Getting a regular checkup also adds three years to your life, which brings us to the next strategy.

3. Know your current health status. Because of the preponderance of unhealthy foods and fast foods, many people are getting sick at an early age. It is not unusual to see young people in their 20s and 30s with high cholesterol, high blood pressure or diabetes. Hence, it pays to get a general checkup at a younger age.

Take a routine blood exam. See your doctor to find out if you need an ECG, chest X-ray, or ultrasound. These tests can help detect diseases early. And if we do find that we have a condition, we can take the necessary steps to control and treat it.

Don’t worry. The treatment plan may be as simple as taking a tablet or just changing your eating habits. Just as a car needs a regular tune-up so it won’t bog down, so does your body need a checkup to be in good shape.

4. Know which medicines to take. Based on your medical condition, your doctor may prescribe a few medicines. Choosing what medicines to take should be a joint decision between you and your doctor. The most common maintenance medicines are for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and heart disease.  There are pros and cons to taking these medicines. But as long as it is properly used, the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages.

Regarding vitamins, ask your doctor which one is right for you. As a general rule, most people can take multivitamins. Other vitamins and minerals like iron, vitamin C, vitamin E and calcium may be taken as prescribed by your doctor.

5. Know what foods to take and what to avoid. There are numerous studies that show that having a healthy diet can reduce your cancer risk by three to 10 percent. A healthy diet can also prevent obesity, diabetes and heart disease. A low-salt diet can reduce high blood pressure, while a low-fat diet can control high cholesterol levels. And a diet low in sweets and sugars can help control diabetes. Indeed, we are what we eat. By knowing your medical condition, we can make a food prescription on what foods to take and what foods to avoid.

In summary, if we follow these five steps, then we can make a plan for your overall health. So far, these are the proven strategies to staying healthy. Good luck.