Small costs can yield Big Rewards

A recent article published in The Lancet journal eClinicalMedicine suggested that seven to eight hours of sleep per day, more than 40 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity a day, and a healthy diet were associated with over nine years of additional lifespan and years spent in good health.

Just five more minutes of sleep, and two minutes of moderate exercise like brisk walking or climbing stairs can add a year to your life. Adding half a serving of vegetables per day more could also lead to an extra year of life for people with the worst existing sleep, [hysical activity, and dietary habits, revealed the study that followed 60,000 people for eight long years.

The combined relationship of sleep, physical activity, and diet is larger than the sum of the individual behaviors. For example, for people with the unhealthiest sleep, physical activity and dietary to achieve one additional year of lifespan through sleep alone would require five times the amount of additional sleep per day (25 minutes) than if physical activity an diet also improved a small amount,”. Said the international group of researchers for the UK, Australia, Chile, and Brazil.

In a separate study, published in the journal The Lancet, researchers from Norway, Spain and Australia showed that adding just 5 minutes of extra walking to the daily routine can cut down the risk of death in the majority of adults by 10 percent.

It will also help the least active adults to reduce their risk of death by around 6 percent.

Further, the study based on data from more that 135,000 adults found that reducing sedentary time by 30 minutes per day was associated with an estimated 7 per cent reduction in all deaths if adopted by the majority of adults (who spend 10 hours being sedentary per day).

Around 3 percent of all deaths can be reduced if adopted by the most sedentary adults (who spend 12 hours being sedentary per day on average).

“These estimates provide important evidence on the wide range of public health impacts associated with even small positive changes in physical activity and inactivity.” Said corresponding author Prof Ulf Ekelund, from the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Oslo.

The researchers cautioned that the findings should not be used as personalized advice; Rather, they highlighted the potential benefits for the population as a whole.

The Sassy Spin: get out of the damn recliner and move!! Five minutes of picking up your feet in an orderly fashion could make you healthier and prolong your life! Walk through Wal-Mart, don’t ride a cart. Walk a flight of stairs instead of riding the elevator. Dance to a song on the radio or television (most are 2-3 minutes in length). Walk around the block after dinner (or lunch or breakfast). Skip the handicapped parking and park a few minutes walk from the entrance. Do your own housework, 2-3 minutes at a time to start and increase as tolerated. Doing to the gym and sweating like a body builder isn’t needed. A little effort on your part can have a lasting positive effect.

Establish a bedtime routine: turn off all electrical devices (this includes the TV, phones and i-pads). Do something to wind down: journal, listen to relaxing music, mediate, read in bed, take a bath. Stop caffeine hours befor bedtime, avoid vigorous physical activity, but light or moderate intensity exercise is appropriate for evening. IF you feel wide awake after roughly 20 minutes , don’t continue to just lay there. Get up and do a quite activity such as reading. Once you feel sleepy return to bed. Your should stick to the same sleep routine, even on vacation and weekends - adjustments should be within an hour of your usual sleep and wake times. Once you are sleeping on a schedule, set your alarm for 5 minutes later than normal and make up the time by having your clothes picked out the night before. The more your prepare before bed the later you can set the wake up call.

A standard serving of vegetables is 80 grams (1/2 cup) of cooked green or orange vegetables. . Raw leafy vegetables would be approx 3/4 cup,or 1/2 cup of vegetable juice. Eating a small salad, a handful of raw carrots, broccoli, celery, cucumbers, peppers, to tomatoes would even e done while taking that after meal walk or as a nightcap before bed.

If you want to be healthier and decrease your chance of dying prematurely - the toools are in your easy reach. Get off the couch, move. Develop good sleep habits and stick to them. Grab a carrot instead of a sack of Oreos and reap the benefits.

Small changes, big rewards: add years with sleep, movement, and veggies

A recent article published in The Lancet journal eClinicalMedicine suggests that 7–8 hours of sleep per day, 40+ minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, and a healthy diet are associated with more than nine additional years of life—and more years spent in good health.

Even better: you don’t have to overhaul your life overnight.

A study that followed 60,000 people for eight years found that just five more minutes of sleep and two minutes of moderate exercise (like brisk walking or climbing stairs) can add about a year to your life. Adding half a serving of vegetables per day could also add another year for people starting with the poorest sleep, activity, and diet habits.

Researchers noted that the combined effect of improving sleep, activity, and diet is bigger than the sum of each change alone. In other words, small improvements in more than one area can go further than a big change in just one.

In a separate study published in The Lancet, researchers from Norway, Spain, and Australia reported that adding just five minutes of extra walking per day can reduce the risk of death for most adults by about 10%. For the least active adults, it may reduce risk by around 6%.

That same research (based on data from more than 135,000 adults) also found that reducing sedentary time by 30 minutes per day was associated with an estimated 7% reduction in deaths if adopted by the majority of adults (who spend about 10 hours per day sedentary). For the most sedentary adults (around 12 hours per day), the estimated reduction was about 3%.

“These estimates provide important evidence on the wide range of public health impacts associated with even small positive changes in physical activity and inactivity,” said corresponding author Prof. Ulf Ekelund of the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences in Oslo.

The researchers cautioned that these findings aren’t meant as personalized medical advice, but they do highlight the potential benefits for the population as a whole.

Quick wins you can start today

• Add 5 minutes of sleep by prepping tomorrow (clothes, coffee, keys) the night before.

• Add 5 minutes of walking—after a meal is perfect.

• Add half a serving of vegetables (a small salad or a handful of raw veggies).

The Sassy Spin

Get out of the damn recliner and move. Five minutes of picking up your feet in an orderly fashion could make you healthier and prolong your life.

Walk through Wal-Mart—don’t ride a cart. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Dance to one song on the radio or TV (most are 2–3 minutes long). Walk around the block after dinner (or lunch, or breakfast). Skip the closest parking spot and park a few minutes’ walk from the entrance.

Do your own housework—2–3 minutes at a time to start—and increase as tolerated. Going to the gym and sweating like a bodybuilder isn’t required. A little effort on your part can have a lasting positive effect.

Establish a bedtime routine

Turn off electrical devices (TV, phones, tablets). Do something to wind down: journal, listen to relaxing music, meditate, read in bed, or take a bath.

Stop caffeine hours before bedtime. Avoid vigorous exercise late in the evening, but light or moderate-intensity activity is fine.

If you’re wide awake after about 20 minutes, don’t just lie there. Get up and do a quiet activity (like reading). When you feel sleepy, return to bed.

Stick to the same sleep routine—even on weekends and vacations (keep changes within about an hour). Once you’re sleeping on a schedule, set your alarm five minutes later and “earn” that time by preparing the night before. The more you prep before bed, the later you can set the wake-up call.

What counts as a serving of vegetables?

A standard serving is 80 grams:

• About 1/2 cup cooked green or orange vegetables

• About 3/4 cup raw leafy vegetables

• About 1/2 cup vegetable juice

A small salad—or a handful of raw carrots, broccoli, celery, cucumbers, peppers, or tomatoes—can even be eaten during that after-meal walk, or as a nightcap before bed.

Bottom line

If you want to be healthier and reduce your chances of dying prematurely, the tools are within easy reach: get off the couch, move, develop good sleep habits, and stick to them.

Grab a carrot instead of a sack of Oreos—and reap the benefits.

Note: This post is for general information and isn’t medical advice. If you have sleep issues or health concerns, talk with your healthcare provider.