While numerous studies have looked at how individual habits may extend or shorten a person's life, far fewer have tried to quantify the benefits of practicing a number of healthy habits together, especially for people who begin only later in life. This was the focus of a 2007 study published in The American Journal of Medicine. The trial examined whether newly adopting a healthy lifestyle in middle age could still produce significant benefits, in terms of lower risk of heart disease.
A group of 15,792 older men and women living in four different communities in the United States were tracked from 1987 to 1998. Aged 45 to 64 years, the subjects were examined for their weight,height,dietary intake,smoking habits and exercise.
The researchers noted they did not include moderate alcohol consumption, because the study aimed to assess the effect of adopting new healthy habits, and beginning to drink in middle age is not widely recommended.
Interestingly, at the beginning of the study only 8.5% of the subjects were practicing all four healthy habits. After 6 years, an additional 970 people had adopted all four of the primary habits. The most common switch was to begin eating at least 5 fruits and vegetables each day.
The researchers examined the ‘‘successful switchers’’,and concluded that the subjects most likely to change habits for the better were older,female, those with a college education, higher income and without a history of high blood pressure.
After four additional years of follow-up the healthiest lifestyle switchers enjoyed a 40% reduction in the risk of death from any cause, and a 35% lower chance of heart attack or strokes.
