Loose Women: Dr Hilary discusses how to live longer
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Atal Malviya, director of healthcare company Concepto Diagnostics, shared his top tips for longevity when it comes to both exercise and diet. He told Express.co.uk: “Exercise is massively important when it comes to your long-term health. Fitness can be a daunting challenge for many, with social media amplifying false narratives about the ideal male and female body.
“But breaking it down into simple tasks like making sure you walk 150 minutes per week is a simple and effective way to improve your life expectancy.”
He explained further: “Research has shown that as little as 150 minutes of brisk walking per week can add 3.4 years to your life expectancy.”
This equates to just 21 minutes a day – roughly the time it takes to walk a mile.
His advice is backed by the UK Chief Medical Officers’ Physical Activity Guidelines, which state that adults should try to be active every day and aim to do at least 150 minutes of physical activity over a week, through a variety of activities.
The NHS says: “For most people, the easiest way to get moving is to make activity part of everyday life, like walking for health or cycling instead of using the car to get around.
“However, the more you do, the better, and taking part in activities such as sports and exercise will make you even healthier.
“For any type of activity to benefit your health, you need to be moving quick enough to raise your heart rate, breathe faster and feel warmer.
“This level of effort is called moderate intensity activity.
“If you’re working at a moderate intensity you should still be able to talk but you won’t be able to sing the words to a song.”
Mr Malviya also recommended a variety of dietary changes to promote longevity.
“Vitamins and minerals are vital to staying healthy, but keeping on top of every last one can be very difficult with a modern diet,” he said.
“Vitamins A through E, calcium and iron are just a selection of the most important vitamins and minerals and by taking multivitamins, you can reap the benefits of each.
“Vitamin A maintains your immune system’s ability to defend against illness and infection.
“Vitamin D ensures that your bones and muscles stay healthy to prevent conditions such as osteomalacia – a disease which makes your bones weak.
“Vitamin D also regulates the level of calcium in your body.
“Calcium helps in building bones, keeping teeth healthy, regulating muscle contractions including heartbeat, and normal clotting of blood.
“Taking multivitamins is an easy change that you can make to your life and will only add 15 seconds to your morning routine, but it can improve your life expectancy by much longer than 15 seconds.”
He added: “Omega-3 fatty acids can also help improve your life expectancy by keeping your heart healthy.
“Either make an effort to eat at least two portions of fish per week, or take omega-3 supplements if your diet doesn’t allow fish to keep your intake at an appropriate level.
“Salmon, sardines and other oily fishes in particular have plenty of omega-3 fatty acid, and most oily fishes are also high in vitamin D.”
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