Tag: longevity

Since 1858, we have known that mortality rates are lower for married individuals compared to people who are single. Why? We don’t know. We don’t even know why there is excess mortality among the unmarried. Of course, there are many hypotheses.

Recently published article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ September 20, 2011) shows that death rate among married men experiencing a heart attack was lower than women or single man in the same situation. Why? Earlier presentation for medical care appears to be one reason.

The authors of the article studied 4403 eligible patients who were diagnosed to have a heart attack. The mean age was 67.3 years, and 37 per cent of them were women. Overall, 75 per cent of married patients, 68 per cent of single patients, 68 per cent of divorced patients and 70 per cent of widowed patients presented within six hours of the onset of chest pain. This shows that being married was associated with lower odds of delayed presentation.

The authors of the article say that marriage has long been known to offer health benefits and is associated with a lower risk of death relative to people who are not married. The effect is more pronounced among men than among women. However, the specific mechanisms responsible for the lower rate of cardiovascular deaths in married persons (especially men) are not known.

One hypotheses proposed is that wives would be more likely than husbands to assume the caregiver role and that the beneficial effect of marriage would therefore be stronger among men than among women.

One British study says, “Although it is known that the length of a person’s life depends on a mixture of economic and social factors, the relative importance of these is still debated.” They concluded that that marriage has a more important effect on longevity than income does. For men, the effect of being married is positive and substantial. For women, the influence of marriage is smaller. Exactly how marriage works its magic remains mysterious, say the authors of the British study.

Here are some more statistics from other scientific studies:

• Single men have mortality rates that are 250 per cent higher than married men
• Single women have mortality rates that are 50 per cent higher than married women
• Married women are 30 per cent more likely to rate their health as excellent or very good compared to single women
• Married men may have better immune systems as well, either from support or from nagging to monitor blood pressure, cholesterol, weight, etc… and may be at less risk to catch colds
• Married men are half as likely to commit suicide as single men, and one third as likely as divorced men.
• Widowed men under 45 are nine times more likely to commit suicide as married men
• Single men drink twice as much as married men, and one out of four say their drinking causes problems. Only one of seven married men says the same.

There are lot more statistics to suggest that having a partner is a good idea for your health, not to mention that it makes good economic sense. The rest, I leave that to your imagination.

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“Life well spent is long”

Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519)

Longevity is defined as length or duration of life. An average person living in an industrialized nation may live to the age of 87.

If you want to live long then do the following:

1. Be an optimist – that is a good way to be cheerful – unless you are a golfer!

2. Approach life with a sense of humor – there is always a funny side to any situation – except when a golfer loses a ball in a water hazard. Laughter is the best medicine.

3. Give up on things which are stressful. Now, golfing should not be stressful if you listen to The Golf Guru in the Golf Digest, “Golf is not about shooting a number, it’s an opportunity to live well”.

4. Exercise at least 30 minutes a day, three days a week. But you can do more. Every movement you make helps keep your muscles trim, melt some fat, and make you feel better.

5. Do things which challenge your brain regularly – like writing a column for Medicine Hat News! Activities which are novel and complex prevent boredom. “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young – Henry Ford (1863-1947).

6. Have a diet which keeps you lean. As somebody has said, if you wish to grow thinner then diminish your dinner. It was in the 1930s, that scientists showed underfed rodents lived up to 40 percent longer than their well-fed counterparts.

7. Do not smoke –reasons should be obvious to most people who are in touch with the reality. For others, there is no hope. They would like to learn lessons the hard way.

8. Be involved in the community.

9. Wear a seat belt – motor vehicle collisions and other types of accidents kill and disable many of our young people. Drive carefully, and do not drink and drive.

10. Cut your consumption of alcohol – alcohol is a calorie loaded drink with no nutritional value.

Important thing about longevity and staying healthy is to make good choices in life and reduce the risk factors – genetic, environmental or lifestyle habits.

Many factors have contributed to our longevity – improvement in nutrition, public hygiene, and discovery of antibiotics, introduction of immunization programs, newer and better methods of understanding, diagnosing and treating many illnesses.

Now we seem to take life for granted – especially in the industrialized and affluent countries we live in. Very few people die of infection or malnutrition. Instead we have an epidemic of obesity – which leads to diabetes, heart disease and other illnesses and disabilities.

It is estimated that if you live up to 80, then the last 10 years of your life will be spent fighting some sort of disease or disability. This burden may be reduced if we take care of our health during our better days. Remember, a life well spent is long.

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