How to Live a Long, Healthy Life

Your long-term health is determined 75 percent by lifestyle and 25 percent by genetics. How you live day-to-day plays a bigger role in long-term health than your family health history in most cases, in other words.

Here are just a few factors in our lives we can manage to live long and well.

1.       Stress Level: Stress creates cortisol, an excess of which can degrade bones, weaken muscles, and shorten life span by as much as five years. A study of identical twins revealed the less-stressed twin to be "younger," and to face less risk of developing age-related disease.

2.       Carrying Fat: Being overweight is generally unhealthy. That's no surprise. There are other kinds of fat that are also unhealthy though. For example, the stores of excess fat around your organs can create major problems. Women are more vulnerable to this fat than men. Lack of exercise, as well as high-fat, high-sugar diets contribute to this buildup. Eating a high-resistance starch, such as chickpeas and lentils, can help reduce these fat stores.

3.       Eating Meat: A lot of research suggests a vegan diet really is a great option to stave off illnesses and disease, including cancer. A vegan diet has been proven to slow the aging process. If you're not interested in giving up meat, try adopting the Mediterranean diet, which has been proven to have heart health benefits. You can also pick one day a week to not eat meat. Even reducing meat consumption can create health benefits.

4.       Muscle Shrinkage: As we age, it is normal and really inevitable to lose muscle mass. Dancing is one of the best exercises around to help keep muscles young.  In a German study, 20 elderly people danced three hours per week and another 20 worked out in a gym. Results revealed significantly better improvements in strength among the dancers.

5.       Eat Nuts: One study revealed people who ate a handful of nuts five days a week were 50 percent less at risk of heart attack than those who do not eat nuts.

6.       Adopt a Pet: Studies have proved animals significantly improve our stress levels. They help lower blood pressure and improve focus. If you're not an animal person, try meditation or yoga to help reduce stress.