The keys to longevity

La longevidad no es solo vivir más años, sino vivirlos con salud y bienestar. Lograrlo requiere hábitos clave: actividad física, sueño adecuado, cuidado emocional, buena alimentación y suplementación cuando es necesaria para cubrir déficits nutricionales. Estos hábitos combinados mejoran la calidad de vida y previenen enfermedades asociadas al envejecimiento.

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But from the perspective of health and well-being, the goal shouldn't just be to extend lifespans. Simply, to live longer. The true goal should be to live longer, but also to improve the quality of life during all those years in which it is possible to increase life expectancy. And to achieve this, enjoying the best physical, mental, and emotional conditions is essential. - General strategies for longevity. Advances in science, in general, and in medicine, in particular, have allowed human life expectancy to increase considerably from the end of the 19th century to the present. Many factors are related to this. First, the development of medications, therapies, and vaccines, thanks to which we managed to limit mortality caused by infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, pneumonia, and others affecting the digestive system. Second, we could talk about an improvement in nutritional habits and a reduction in malnutrition, which has not affected all areas of the planet equally, but has been an important factor in others. Another factor to consider, and one that has played a key role, has been the development of national health systems. Facilitating access to healthcare for the population has made a significant contribution to reducing the incidence of certain diseases, although research is currently seeking to continue advancing to find cures for many other diseases for which there is still no effective treatment. Research related to longevity is currently experiencing its highest investment ever, with large companies from all sectors and governments involved in developing new treatments, deepening our understanding of the aging process, and designing new strategies. In times of Covid, it may seem strange to say that infectious diseases are no longer the leading cause of death, as they were not long ago. Leaving aside the ravages of the pandemic and taking the last year and a half out of the equation, the leading cause of death since the mid-20th century onward is diseases associated with aging: cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease... Of course, we must also take into account that in many cases, our current lifestyle has led us to situations where we live in environments where pollution harms us day after day, the pace of life or work commitments prevent us from eating as we would like or getting the necessary hours of rest and sleep, and that there are also situations of prolonged stress and other external factors that negatively affect us. - Individual strategies for longevity. Despite all the progress, the participation and involvement of individuals in their own well-being is essential. Individuals have long played an active role in taking care of our health, and our habits largely determine how different diseases or ailments can affect us, especially those associated with the passage of time and the aging process. Becoming aware of this and making certain changes in our habits can help us increase our life expectancy and, equally importantly, improve our physical, mental, and emotional well-being. These habits include: Maintaining an active lifestyle that reduces sedentary lifestyle and makes exercise a part of our daily routine. Quitting toxic habits such as smoking or reducing alcohol consumption. Improving the quality of sleep and rest. Paying special attention to mental health. Improving our nutritional habits by reducing or eliminating the consumption of unhealthy foods such as sugar, salt, or ultra-processed foods. Optimizing our diet with the help of nutritional supplements.

Maintain an active lifestyle

Maintaining an active lifestyle and exercising regularly is essential for achieving a noticeable improvement in quality of life.

Physical exercise helps prevent diseases such as depression, cardiovascular disease, overweight, or obesity.

The minimum required for an adult would be no less than 150 minutes per week combining aerobic exercises with stretching and strength training sessions.

Quitting harmful substances

At this point, it doesn't even seem necessary to say that alcohol, tobacco, or drugs are harmful to health and contribute to an increased risk of mortality or the development of diseases associated with these habits. But there are other habits that can be harmful and to which we perhaps don't pay as much attention.

We could mention the risks posed by self-medication or prolonged medical treatment with certain types of medications, which can also pose significant health risks.

Improve sleep and rest

A large part of the population has trouble sleeping or, for various reasons, cannot get enough sleep.

It's true that all sleep-related problems are complex, but a series of basic recommendations can help improve the quality of sleep and rest: avoid drinking too much fluid before bed to avoid the need to go to the bathroom during the night, control the temperature (neither too cold nor too hot) and try to sleep in a completely dark room, move electronic devices away or turn off, avoid stimulants from midday onwards, and avoid heavy dinners.

Taking care of emotional well-being

Anxiety, depression, and adjustment disorders are increasingly common in today's society. In some cases, it's referred to as a stress epidemic.

Good emotional health is essential for well-being. However, conditions such as anxiety or depression can also be linked to other ailments and can lead to digestive, cardiovascular, muscular, and even sexual problems in the medium term.

To the extent possible, a basic goal should be to introduce routines into daily life that serve to promote mental health care.

Improving nutritional habits

We are fortunate to live in a country where the Mediterranean diet is one of the basic pillars of our diet.

If we could simply stick to the foods and cooking methods that are part of the Mediterranean diet, we would already be taking a very important step towards our health and well-being: using olive oil as our main fat, eating fruits and vegetables daily, avoiding ultra-processed foods, reducing our sugar and salt consumption as much as possible, replacing processed snacks with nuts, eliminating the consumption of pre-cooked sauces, and making water our main beverage.

Nutritional supplements

Nutritional supplements should be viewed as an aid to optimizing our nutrition. Where we can't reach with food, for various reasons, supplements can help us reach them.

There is abundant documentation and countless studies conducted regarding the limited nutritional value of many of the foods we consume today. Even if you try to eat healthy, you may still find that you are getting only a limited nutritional value.

This is where nutritional supplements play a key role, helping you achieve the desired nutritional intake.

- But then... What do I take? This is probably the question we receive most often. Sometimes we also receive questions about ingredients, how to take a supplement, the best time to do so... But the fundamental question is: "So, what do I take?" The answer is that based on the results obtained from the tests, we can detect existing deficiencies and, from there, prescribe nutritional supplements in each case. It is true that the data regarding certain nutritional deficiencies in the population is overwhelming. And based on these data obtained in multiple studies, alarmingly low levels of certain nutrients are detected. Two paradigmatic cases are magnesium and vitamin D, but it is also difficult to achieve adequate levels of Omega 3 exclusively through diet, the alarmingly high cholesterol levels in a large part of the population, or the similar problem existing with high sugar levels. It is also worth keeping in mind that there are products that can be truly useful in the prevention of certain diseases and other ailments.