Who says you have to look your age? Growing older is a fact of life if you live long enough, but that does not mean we have to give into the ravages of the aging process.
Being young at heart is about more than appearance (which we will address later in this article), it is about maximizing the number of years and the quality of those years. A recent Harvard study published in the journal Circulation reveals that there are five simple, healthy habits that anyone can add to their lifestyle as late as age 50 to add as many as 12 years for men and 14 for women.
These five habits are only a part of the lifestyle of 8% of Americans and contribute to why the United States ranks only 31st in the world for life expectancy at birth. The five healthy habits that anyone can quickly make a part of their lives are:
- Not Smoking
- Having a body mass index between 18.5 and 25
- At least 30 minutes of moderate exercise a day
- Having no more than one 150ml glass of wine for women and two for men each day
- Having a diet rich in fruit, vegetables, and whole grains but low in red meat, saturated fats, and sugar.
These healthy lifestyle choices led to an 82% less likely chance of dying from heart disease and 65% less likely chance of dying from cancer when compared to those with a less healthy lifestyle.
Of course, other choices can improve your health and longevity but the Harvard study spanned 30 years, and those choices gave the most predictable results.
There is an old saying that states “you can’t judge a book by its cover” but as we well know most people do just that. In addition to being healthy and young on the inside, most people prefer to look their best on the outside without going to extremes.
There are some simple things you can do to give your outward appearance more youth that also benefit your overall health. The at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise can include cardio that keeps blood flowing to your skin for a youthful glow while resistance training can help maintain muscle tone.
Getting enough sleep (7-8 hours for most adults) not only helps your hormone balance it can reduce bags and wrinkles if you are also drinking plenty of water each day.
One of the better ways to restore a youthful look without resorting to cosmetic or plastic surgery is to restore your smile. Missing, chipped, stained and decayed teeth all contribute to the aged look.
When you are missing molars, it can sometimes give your face a compressed look, and a missing tooth from your smile is anything but youthful. Today, it is effortless to replace a missing tooth with a realistic and functional implant placed by Dr. Beers. It is an instant facelift!
Yellow, darkened and stained teeth give an appearance of looking old, and it is one of the easiest to correct. Take home whitening can take as little as two weeks for most people to see the result they want, while the in-office whitening can give you the same thing in under 2 hours.
Chipped, broken and worn teeth can really contribute to that overall haggard and worn look. When restored by a dentist with the training and experience, you can immediately see the years come off. Don’t believe it? Compare a picture of yourself in your early 20’s to the smile you see in the mirror today.
Living a long life doesn’t mean looking or acting old. We can still be active while looking our best without very much effort these days. You can be the person that is a young version of your age, and if you tell them how old you are, they may not believe you could be that old.
