Healthy Lifestyles may Increase Lifespan

Regardless of the presence of multiple chronic conditions, a healthy lifestyle is linked to up to 6.3 years longer life for men and 7.6 years for women, stated new research published in the open-access journal PLOS Medicine by Yogini Chudasama of the University of Leicester, and colleagues. This is the first study to quantify whether the death risk is linked to an individual and combined risk factors depend on the presence of multiple chronic conditions.

Several studies have associated healthy lifestyles with longer life expectancy, but it is not clear in the case of people with multiple chronic conditions.

To address this knowledge gap, Chudasama and colleagues analyzed data collected between 2006 and 2010 from 480,940 adults (median age of 58 years [range 38-73]) in the UK Biobank. The participants were followed up until 2016.

The study assessed the presence of 36 chronic conditions and four self-reported lifestyle factors, namely leisure-time physical activity, smoking, diet, and alcohol consumption.

Healthy Lifestyle and Life Expectancy

In men with multiple chronic conditions:

• An unhealthy score was associated with a nonsignificant gain of 1.5 life years at 45 years compared to a very unhealthy score.
• A healthy score was linked to a statistically significant gain of 4.5 years.
• A very healthy score was associated with a statistically significant gain of 6.3 years.
In women:
• 3.5 years, 6.4 years, and 7.6 years, were all statistically significant gains.
• No current smoking was associated with the largest survival benefit.
• At 45 years, current smokers had an estimated 5 to 6 years shorter life expectancy versus current non-smokers.

The findings suggested public health recommendations about adopting a healthy lifestyle to decrease the risk of developing chronic long-term conditions apply equally to individuals who already have multiple chronic conditions.

Advertisement

Dr. Chudasama says "More individuals are living with multiple chronic conditions, impacting their health and daily lives. With access to a UK dataset of over 450,000 adults we were able to investigate the benefits of a healthy lifestyle in individuals with multiple illnesses. We found a healthy lifestyle, in particular abstinence from smoking, increased life expectancy by as much as 7 years. Our study has important implications for the public's health, as we hope our findings have shown that it's never too late to make vital lifestyle changes."

The study's limitations include the observational nature of the study, which precludes conclusions regarding causality, and the non-representative sample, which was 95% white and more affluent than the general UK population.

Advertisement

Source-Medindia