Do the most long lived people that you know have healthy lifestyles?

[Bumpitybumper]

I have been listening to a few podcasts lately that have really stressed the importance of healthy living and things like diet and exercise. None of them really have any tolerance for things that I think most of the population enjoy quite regularly like the odd biscuit or cake. They also don't think it's enough to eat a diet that would be traditionally considered healthy with 57
portions of fruit and veg as now the emphasis is on eating the right fruit and vegetables and nuts and seeds etc. You have to do a certain number of days cardio and strength training. It really is never ending.

It got me thinking that the people that I know that have lived the longest in relatively good health have generally been pretty active and eaten well but haven't really got anywhere close to the lifestyle that these health experts advocate. Is my experience unusual or have others found the same thing in their lives?

I'm more concerned at the number of sub 40 year old healthy, fit and active people getting serious illnesses particularly cancer. It is everywhere.

My grandma was an inactive alcoholic and lived to 96!
I think it has more to do with genes than lifestyle, going by my family!

Interesting - looking at my grandparents - one was very healthy and slim, didn’t smoke, lived until mid 80’s. Their spouse, an alcoholic who also likes to smoke cigars outlived them, mid 90’s I think. Other side of the family - one didn’t smoke but did drink, average diet, lives until late 80’s. Spouse - very overweight, bad diet, smoked loads and lives to 75 - heart issues an op went wrong - possible due to excess weight. So a mix really 🤷‍♀️

It's weird so many people have mentioned walking. I have long held a suspicion that walking is really key to good health but there seems more focus on 'exercise' when listening to these podcasts and health experts. Anecdotally the people I know that have lived longest have all been big walkers too!

I would say yes, but not in the way that people have HEALTHY LIFESTYLES!!! now.

Current definition of healthy lifestyle appears to be driving in range rovers to exercise classes, wearing 10 layers of creams on your face, drinking lattes made with any milk other than cows and eating food from half way around the world.

Yes, they do. BUT... not in the sort of crazy, "never eat meat, treats or drink ever" kind of way.

There's a genetic aspect to it too, I'm sure. My dad and aunt are both doing well - he's almost 90 and she's well into her 90s. Both have always kept active both mentally and physically. My dad did a lot of running when he was younger but was always an outdoor person - gardening, walking, hiking etc. She didn't do formal exercise, ever, but was the type to be out and about every day, very active in her community including helping older members when she was the younger one, keen gardener, dog owner and walker etc.

Food wise, they were brought up very traditional - meat and two veg kind of thing, with treats/puddings absolutely allowed but not excessively so. Portions were measured - x number of sausages, spoonful of carrots etc.
Snacking between meals is completely anathema to them (barring the occasional coffee and cake as a treat, usually when out or when entertaining). Even drinks are part of their routine - tea in the morning, possibly small glass of juice with breakfast, mid morning coffee, water at lunch followed maybe by a tea or coffee, water in afternoon, late afternoon tea, water with dinner and a post dinner tea/coffee. Both liked a drink and in my dad's case, probably a bit too much at times, but overall didn't drink to excess.

Both are keen readers and when retired have always attended events/groups/talks etc so they keep their minds as active as their bodies. both still read a newspaper, cover to cover, every day.

Perhaps as children of WW2, they both have a "just get on with it" kind of attitude which seems to have served them well over the course of their respective lives.

Btw in terms of age I'm thinking into their 90s.

One of my grandfathers lived into his 80s on a diet of bacon, whiskey, stout and 60 players red a day.

I read somewhere that genetics account for 30% of cancer. Anecdotally this seems too low.

My family tree (back to 1640s) suggests it’s definitely genetics on the maternal lines. Almost everyone, male and female, lived to ripe old ages and most survived epidemics and childhood diseases. One line in Norfolk seemed particularly strong, where they pretty much all lived into their 80s and 90s in the 17/18 and 19th centuries. One woman made 102.

The line started out in aristocracy but 4 generations on they were in the poor house and remained in poverty for decades so I don’t suppose diets were good.

Up to date, mum is entering her late 80s now. Physically fit as a fiddle, no medical issues at all. Unfortunately, that hasn’t prevented dementia from reading its ugly head.
Her older sister is 97, lives independently. No physical or mental issues at all.

Hoping my kids have inherited those genes .

On my husband’s side his mum is 90 this year. Physically frail but mentally strong. Always had a terrible diet so again, it’s in the genes.

I watched a documentary on longevity where they talked to old folk around the world on their lives and why they think they have lived into their 80s, 90s and 100s.

Fundamentally their lives were completely different to ours now.

Cycled and walked everywhere (cars expensive)
Food was made from scratch sourced locally and seasonally, they had to eat less as they often grew their own, had to preserve for the winter months and food was treated with respect as it was a finite source. People went hungry ie. No snacking, making food stretch, this was normal and not a sign of poverty.
Lives were smaller they didn’t get out much beyond their area, women were in the home, more community.
They were busy as life was more manual, jobs both in an out the home were more physical and took longer so less downtime.

I also think (and this is going to sound awful) people that live to these ages are stronger, they have got through child hood illnesses, unassisted childbirth and are just healthier in general. Medicine is wonderful but it means people are alive who simply wouldn’t have survived 100 years ago and because of medical advances people who would have died earlier can have their conditions managed.

An old fashioned lifestyle and strong genetics has got folks to these ages now, our generation has completely different factors at play which will affect our longevity.

My oldest relative walked everywhere, didn’t drive. Cooked traditional food daily. Meat, fish veg etc. Drank booze fairly regularly but stopped smoking after probably only about 2 years of it early 20’s. Age 103

My great grandmother lived to 91 and had smoked since age of 14 (fashion in the 20s!). She enjoyed very strong home poured G&Ts until she died! She got dementia and lung cancer but only in her last year or so. Was fit as a fiddle otherwise with no health complaints and was very independent in all her daily activities! Hoping I inherit her good genes!

My mum died in January aged 94.
However she has been old for a long time really.
I can remember her at my age now and she seemed older than I do.
Genetics maybe.

My mum and her brother (82 and 86) have already lasted much longer than their parents (DGF died of stroke on his 60s, DGM heart attack at 77). I wouldn't say either of them lead the healthiest of lifestyles but neither have ever smoked, uncle never drank, DM the occasional glass of red wine. Both still of sound mind. Both have some physical ailments associated with getting older. My aunt's husband turned 102 earlier this year... sadly I have no genetic link to him 😄

LOL!!! My 102 year old uncle also b partial to a strong G&T 😄

Wouldn't surprise me if Gordon's and Schweppes end up holding the secret to longevity.

@Bumpitybumper
I read somewhere that genetics account for 30% of cancer. Anecdotally this seems too low.

I'm hoping that it is the case as both my parents died fairly young (F61, M73) and both of bone cancer 😪

Moderate eating habits- small portions
Moderate drinking- plenty of tea- no water
Moderate exercise- walking/gardening
Sociable and with a good support network.
My aunts - 3 sisters lived until their late nineties

Yes, I think this is why I wondered if the people that have actually lived long healthy lives that we all knows we're unintentionally following many of the new 'health rules' without realising or if actually just generally following conventional wisdom on what is healthy is enough.

The fittest and ‘healthiest’ (in terms of lifestyle) of my grandparents died just shy of 80. The unfittest, with the unhealthiest lifestyle - drank 8 pints 3 or 4 times a week, smoked like a chimney, never exercised, and ate a full cooked breakfast every morning of his life - died at 97, and only then because he refused to eat, as he was fed up of life and ready to go.

A friend with the healthiest lifestyle of anyone I know had a heart attack out of the blue at 40.

I don’t know anyone with a super healthy lifestyle who’s lived to be over 95, and I don’t know anyone with a super unhealthy lifestyle who’s conked up out super early.

I tell myself this is all anecdotal and try to live ‘healthily’, but I do wonder at times, I really do. Maybe some of the stats are off.

Nothing "guarantees" a long healthy life.

The best you can do is put your body in the best position to improve your chances of a long healthy life.

Lots of diseases/conditions have no known "causes", so literally anyone can get struck down with them, however healthy/well you've lived your life. BUT, being fit and healthy generally can certainly improve your chances of getting through it, i.e. greater tolerance to medication such as chemotherapy, greater chances of surviving infections etc you acquire whilst in hospital, etc. It's widely accepted that being fit and healthy can improve the effectiveness of some medications/drugs/treatments.

Obviously, if you do "risky" things like smoking, excessive drinking, unhealthy eating, lack of exercise, you increase the risk of not only getting conditions/diseases linked to those poor lifestyle choices, you also increase the risk of medications/treatments not being as effective or not being tolerated, and increase the risks of not surviving infections, etc.

No guarantees of anything. Lots of heavy smokers don't get lung cancer, lots of overweight people don't get diabetes, but likewise lots of fit/healthy people get various cancers that don't have known "causes" and couldn't reasonably have been avoided by doing things differently (well not according to current medical knowledge anyway).

I've known 3 people who've had breast cancer, all at relatively young ages (under 50). The one who survived the longest (over 30 years) was the one who'd led a fit and healthy life and continued to live healthily after treatments (it returned twice, first after 20 years and then after another 10 years). The other two weren't specifically unfit or unhealthy, but they weren't as healthy, and both struggled more through chemotherapy and despite the first course of treatment working and putting them in remission, cancer returned more quickly (around 5 and 10 years respectively), and the second round of treatment wasn't as effective and didn't really work, meaning sadly neither survived as long. Yes, anecdotal "evidence" but it seems to broadly fit in with the idea of being fit and healthy generally improves your chances of surviving major health traumas.

After all, life length and health is really just about probabilities - nothing is guaranteed, but you can improve your chance/probability of a longer/healthier life by looking after your body and not taking risks/abusing it etc.

When I look at my grandparents and aunts and uncles who lived to their late 80s and 90s, I'd say yes - they did have generally healthy lifestyles - I suppose "everything in moderation" comes to mind when I think of them. They certainly didn't live like today's health and fitness gurus say we should. They didn't follow low carb diets or live on kombucha, avacados and kale. They didnt work out or lift weights.
Instead they had three home cooked meals a day. No processed food or junk. They did bake cakes and would always have a slice with a cup of tea every afternoon. Their meals were very British meat and two veg types of food. They didn't do any particular exercise apart from going on long walks (that's what they all had in common, they'd walk everywhere). I'm aware that most of their lives were lived before pesticides and chemicals were added to food. I can't help thinking pesticide free food contributed to their longevity.

So my father's mum (grandma) lived healthfully. Her diet is usually Fresh carrot juice for breakfast, veg soup for lunch or skipped and then grilled fish and white plain rice with vegetables and another fresh carrot juice for dinner. Did not drink or smoke ever and hardly ever ate sweets and when she did they were tiny portions.
She lived well in her 90s but she developed dementia followed by pneumonia and died.
My dad (her son) smoked and drank and died at 70 of a health issue.

I think if your genetics are fucked e.g. lots of deadly cancer in the family, childhood diabetes 1 then you are already compromised and should do the best you can.
If you're healthy now don't take it for granted.

It's not just what you'll die of it's the quality of life, living a long life with pain is just not fun. If you've smoked all your life and in your 80s there are bound to be some side effects, yes you're not dead but you're probably not in good health either.. we should raise our standards and hear the full story when we say things like my uncle smoked and drank and lived to 100 because there is more to it than that.

Actuaries would know more about this.

Definitely a genetic element to it I'd say, as someone said above it seems almost a lottery at times.

However, all the people who lived to be old in my family were all drinkers (some pretty heavy), meat eaters, not smokers.

But an observation was that they were manual workers in their lifetimes. My grandma and her sisters (who all lived into their 80s) worked on factory lines, in warehouses, on shopfloors. Similarly my grandad (very heavy drinker even into his 90s) worked on the land. They took the bus to work, even though they had a car. They were active people even though they never did any exercise.

I think this is a big different to the generation after who started to become more desk based. I do wonder whether that has a bigger impact than diet/bad habits necessarily.