The Lazy Man’s Guide to Longevity

Everyone wants to live a long and healthy life. Is there a secret to longevity? Some people are suffering from quite a few illnesses from the beginning of the middle age, but others are very healthy even though they are stepping into their old age. What is the key difference between these two groups?

Harvard Medical School professor Sanjiv Chopra has reached a conclusion after decades of research. Doing these five simple things just might extend your life.

He called them: “The Lazy Man’s Guide to Longevity.”

1. Drink Coffee

Dr. Chopra indicates coffee is a miracle drug for health; numerous studies have shown that regular coffee drinkers have lower incidence of getting diabetes, Parkinson’s disease and liver cancer.

In 2012, a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine analyzed physical changes in 40 million people over 14 years. It found that if people drink 2-6 cups of coffee a day, their mortality rates would be reduced by 15% in women and 10% in men.

A reminder from Chinese medicine practitioners: If your body belongs to the Yin type, with hot and humid constitution, you should drink less coffee; in particular, the dark roast coffee can bring out the heat within, making you prone to anger, or get dry mouth and constipation.

2. Exercise Regularly

Dr. Chopra cited a study published in the medical journal PLOS, which found walking 150 minutes a week could help the body gain 3.5-- 4.5 years of life.

However, some people just hate exercising and sweating. Dr. Chopra asked his patients to write down “various kinds of sports and the one they resent the least,” and based his prescriptions on their preferences.

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