What is Healthspan?
Since the mid-twentieth century, life expectancy has increased by approximately 30 years. That’s a monumental achievement – except there’s one problem, and it’s a big one – healthspan has not followed suit. And if you’re past your healthspan, it means you may be chronically unwell, many times with degenerative conditions.
What Exactly Does Healthspan Mean?
Healthspan refers to the number of years you live disease-free. It’s the period of life in which you’re in good health, free from chronic diseases and the disabilities of aging. If your lifespan is far greater than your healthspan, it means that your quality of life will be poor.
The task for society at large – and for you – is to improve your healthspan so that it matches, or comes close to matching, your life span. If you’re going to live a long life, in short, you want it to be worth living. You want to be able to experience, and do, the things you enjoy doing when you’re well.
What You Can Do to Improve Your Healthspan
Considering that lifespan is the total number of years lived and healthspan is the number of years lived free of disease and frailty, isn’t it best if the two measures are close to each other in terms of time?
Well of course it is, but how do you improve your healthspan? The answer is surprisingly simple: through healthy food and healthy exercise. Combined, these two simple activities will help you to elevate your healthspan to match that of your lifespan, so that your golden years won’t be marred by disease and infirmity.
Moving for at least thirty minutes daily and eating well will help you with:
Reaching/maintaining a healthy weight
Preventing or lowering high blood pressure
Lowering blood sugar and preventing Type 2 Diabetes
Reducing your risk for kidney disease
Reducing your risk for heart disease or stroke
Reducing the risk of certain kinds of cancer
Handling stress more efficiently
Reducing or mitigating depression and anxiety
Getting Started with Healthy Eating and Exercise
It can help to speak with your doctor about the best physical activities for you and the best diet, but commonly, 30 minutes of activity most days of the week is what is most recommended.
Movement means moderate activities, such as walking or dancing. These increase your heart rate and breathing, but allow you to talk as you move. Yoga, to improve your core strength and flexibility, is another good form of exercise.
Just be sure to start slowly if you haven’t been active, and spread out your movement over the course of the week. And if time is scarce, consider breaking up physical movement into two or three short walks each day. And, move and stretch when sitting at the computer or watching television.
Lastly, stick to a schedule – put movement on your calendar. Make a set time your active time – and keep to it!
Healthy Foods
Along with daily movement, eating healthy is what will increase your healthspan, too. A healthy diet includes:
Vegetables
Fruits
Whole grains and fiber
Small portions of protein
Reading packaging nutrition labels to find choices with the least additives, fats, and salts
It does not include:
Processed or fast food
Excessive sugary treats or breads
Sodas
Large amounts of red meat
And, no overeating! A balanced portion size is also key. Don’t fill every inch of your plate or pile it high with food. Stick to the center of your plate for serving size. Adding a healthy herbal supplement or two can enhance your diet and improve your healthspan, as well.
Learn More About Longevity Herbs
Keep all your healthy bases covered by adding a healthy vitamin or supplement to your diet. At Longevity Herbs, we are here to help! If you’d like to learn more about Longevity Herbs, browse our product selection online or contact us today.
