15 science-backed signs you could live to be 100

Feeling connected to family and friends keeps people engaged and facilitates healthy ageing, says Dr. Walston. “Being isolated works in the other direction and can lead to chronic illnesses.” In Sardinia, Italy, another tiny Mediterranean island with a large centenarian population, friendship is key, according to Dan Buettner, a National Geographic fellow who has travelled the world to study its longest-living people. “Life is very social. People meet on the street daily and savour each other’s company. They count on each other. If someone gets sick, a neighbour is right there,” he wrote in the Wall Street Journal.

Also, avoid these habits that make you age faster.

Connections of any kind are important, but if the people you associate with are healthy and motivated, this can be a huge boost to your own longevity. The New England Journal of Medicine claims that if your friends gain weight, your own chances of doing so increase by a whopping 57%. This doesn’t mean you should shun your less healthy friends, of course; look into some fitness activities you can do together. It’s a win-win.

Drinking one or two cups of tea a day is great for your heart. Both green and black tea contain catechins, which relax blood vessels. However, you should be making the tea yourself; in ready-to-drink teas, most of the catechins have probably dissolved already, so they don’t have quite the same heart-healthy power. Prevention.com also warns that putting milk in your tea could also negate its health value. Honey it is.

Make sure to avoid these things that are ageing you prematurely. 

This other popular caffeine-filled beverage is pretty much on the opposite end of the health spectrum as tea. Drinking soft drink even once a day doubles your risk of metabolic syndrome, which can cause heart disease, diabetes and weight gain. Even scarier, the sweeteners used in soda – both natural and artificial – can train your taste buds to crave more sweet food and drink. And don’t fall for the “diet soda” trap, either; its effects on your health are virtually the same.

Discover what your parents’ health reveals about you. 

Keep your house clean and your body healthy all at once. Spending an hour doing an active chore, such as vacuuming or washing the windows, can burn almost 1255 kilojoules! According to a study of adults between ages 70 and 90, making this a habit can lower your risk of death by 30 percent. That’s worth the slight hassle of doing chores, we think.

It seems random, sure, but apparently eating purplish-coloured foods can give you a major health boost. And no, we’re not talking about grape-flavoured lollies or ice cream. We’re talking about the grapes themselves, blueberries, or – surprise! – red wine. All of these are loaded with polyphenols, which can reduce the risk of both heart disease and Alzheimer’s. Eating both blueberries and purple grapes can also improve your brain function and memory, so eat up.

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Source: RD.com