HOW LONG WILL YOU LIVE?
Ok. We can’t predict the exact date you’ll pop you clogs, but leading gerontogist Dr. David Demko, who has served on two US government commissions investigating the effects of aging, has spent years working out what governs life span.
"Long life isn’t just the result of smart genes and dumb luck," he says. "In fact 80% of the controlling factors are related to lifestyle." The chances you’ll make it to 100 depend on five areas: genetic inheritance, diet, exercise, an alert mind (use it or lose it) and outlook (meaningful lives last longer). Demko has even developed a life span calculator: it starts with an assumed life expectancy of 75 for men, 80 for women, from which you add or subtract years depending on your answers (a short version is shown below – the full quiz has 127 questions).
Don’t panic if you score low. "Try switching to a healthier life style and you may live a long, long time," Demko says. Of course, then there’s the question of saving enough cash to see you through retirement…
Questions of Life or Death:
Do you have an annual medical check-up? (yes) + 3 years (No) –3 years
Did your grandparents live to at least 80? (yes) + 3 years ---
Do you do voluntary work? (yes) + 2 years (No) -1 years
Are you graduate? (yes) + 2 years ---
Do you have 2 or more female children? (yes) +3 years ---
Are you able to laugh at your mistakes? --- (No) -3 years
Do you have a close friend to confide in? (yes) + 1 year (No) - 2 years
Do you maintain mental fitness? (yes) + 4 years ---
Do you take regular aerobic exercise? (yes) + 3 years ---
Do you eat balanced diet? (yes) + 2 years (No) - 3 years
Are you always going on and off fad diets? --- (No) -5 years
Do you smoke a pack of cigarettes a day? (yes) - 4 years ---
Do you live/work with a smoker? (yes) - 1 year ---
Do you own a dog/cat? (yes) +2 years ---
Do you live alone? (yes) -3 years ---
Do you practice a religious belief? (yes) +6 years ---
Do you have a system for managing stress?(yes) +4 years (No) -3 years
Are you in love? (yes) +7 years ---
Do you fear the uncertainties of old age?(yes) -2 years ---
(Courtesy: The Readers’ Digest, Sept. 2004)
Ok. We can’t predict the exact date you’ll pop you clogs, but leading gerontogist Dr. David Demko, who has served on two US government commissions investigating the effects of aging, has spent years working out what governs life span.
"Long life isn’t just the result of smart genes and dumb luck," he says. "In fact 80% of the controlling factors are related to lifestyle." The chances you’ll make it to 100 depend on five areas: genetic inheritance, diet, exercise, an alert mind (use it or lose it) and outlook (meaningful lives last longer). Demko has even developed a life span calculator: it starts with an assumed life expectancy of 75 for men, 80 for women, from which you add or subtract years depending on your answers (a short version is shown below – the full quiz has 127 questions).
Don’t panic if you score low. "Try switching to a healthier life style and you may live a long, long time," Demko says. Of course, then there’s the question of saving enough cash to see you through retirement…
Questions of Life or Death:
Do you have an annual medical check-up? (yes) + 3 years (No) –3 years
Did your grandparents live to at least 80? (yes) + 3 years ---
Do you do voluntary work? (yes) + 2 years (No) -1 years
Are you graduate? (yes) + 2 years ---
Do you have 2 or more female children? (yes) +3 years ---
Are you able to laugh at your mistakes? --- (No) -3 years
Do you have a close friend to confide in? (yes) + 1 year (No) - 2 years
Do you maintain mental fitness? (yes) + 4 years ---
Do you take regular aerobic exercise? (yes) + 3 years ---
Do you eat balanced diet? (yes) + 2 years (No) - 3 years
Are you always going on and off fad diets? --- (No) -5 years
Do you smoke a pack of cigarettes a day? (yes) - 4 years ---
Do you live/work with a smoker? (yes) - 1 year ---
Do you own a dog/cat? (yes) +2 years ---
Do you live alone? (yes) -3 years ---
Do you practice a religious belief? (yes) +6 years ---
Do you have a system for managing stress?(yes) +4 years (No) -3 years
Are you in love? (yes) +7 years ---
Do you fear the uncertainties of old age?(yes) -2 years ---
(Courtesy: The Readers’ Digest, Sept. 2004)
