Gaby
Some people are genetically predisposed to shorter lifespans. Lifestyle factors — smoking, alcohol, diet, and physical activity — also affect how long we live.
A new study from Zhejiang University School of Medicine and the University of Edinburgh finds a healthy lifestyle can offset genetic risk by about 62 percent and could add roughly five years to life expectancy. Researchers at Zhejiang University School of Medicine in China and the University of Edinburgh in the UK confirmed these findings.
They say there hasn’t been much research explaining how a healthy lifestyle can “correct” genetic predispositions.
What Scientists Discovered
For 13 years, researchers analyzed data from 353,742 volunteers registered in the UK Biobank. During this period, there were 24,239 deaths.
Participants were grouped into three genetically determined categories regarding lifespan: long (20.1%), average (60.1%), and short (19.8%). They were also categorized based on lifestyle into three groups: favorable (23.1%), average (55.6%), and unfavorable (21.3%), as reported by The Guardian.
The researchers utilized polygenic risk scores to examine numerous genetic variants and determine individuals’ overall genetic predisposition to longer or shorter lives. Other assessments considered whether individuals smoked, consumed alcohol, exercised, had a certain body shape, maintained a healthy diet, and got adequate sleep.
They found that individuals with a higher genetic risk for a shorter lifespan faced a 21 percent greater risk of premature death compared with those with a lower genetic risk, regardless of lifestyle. Meanwhile, people with an unhealthy lifestyle had a 78 percent higher likelihood of early death, regardless of genetic predisposition. An unhealthy lifestyle combined with a genetic predisposition to a shorter life more than doubled the risk of premature death.
They also found that a favorable lifestyle could compensate for about 62 percent of the genetic risk for a shorter lifespan. The report estimated that participants with high genetic risk could extend their lifespan by about 5.22 years at age 40 if they adopted a healthy lifestyle.
The scientists said the best foundation for increasing lifespan includes quitting smoking, regular physical activity, adequate sleep, and healthy eating.
The report states, “The study explains the key role of a healthy lifestyle in mitigating the impact of genetic factors on reduced lifespan.”
Matt Lambert, a medical information and advocacy manager at the World Cancer Research Fund, summarized: “This new research shows that despite the influence of genetic factors, a healthy lifestyle, which includes a balanced diet and maintaining physical activity, can help us live longer.”
The results of the study were published in the journal BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine.
