8 Science-Backed Things You Can Do Now To Help You Live Longer

Let's face it, just about everyone is looking for effective, safe ways to turn back the clock for their skin, body, and just overall health. Here's the thing: We do have influence over our longevity destiny, and we can slow aging with lifestyle and dietary changes that improve our body and skin's ability to function optimally and repair itself. "The thinking is that for the average person, your genes influence about 25% of your longevity, and 75% is the environment," Robert Rountree, M.D., renowned integrative physician, recently told mbg.

According to functional medicine physician Frank Lipman, M.D., "Sleep is the most important thing you can do for aging." Not only does restorative sleep help detox your brain and reduce the risk of neurodegenerative diseases by triggering glymphatic drainage, i.e., waste removal, but it's important for regulating blood sugar as well (remember, unbalanced blood sugar regulation is at the core of the aging process).

Nicotinamide riboside (NR), a newly discovered form of vitamin B3, which our bodies convert into nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD). NAD is a coenzyme found in all living cells, and it plays a vital role in energy metabolism and maintaining proper cell functioning. Levels of NAD also decline significantly as we get older, and these declining levels seem to drive the aging process. Research has shown that NR as a supplement converts directly into 1nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), which is then converted into NAD—this process is much quicker than the other NAD precursors. Additional research has shown that helps support NAD levels in the body2.

Right now, there's plenty of research in the works for NR, all of which seems very promising3. For example, this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study found that taking the supplement daily helped individuals manage healthy weight4, which in turn helps longevity.

"The No. 1 cellular pathway that's involved in aging is called the insulin-signaling pathway," says Rountree. "What does that say? That blood sugar regulation is really at the core of the aging process. So that translates into a basic rule of not eating refined carbohydrates." 

Another great way to maintain healthy blood sugar and battle inflammation is by intermittent fasting, extended periods of time without eating, or time-restricted feeding, in which you consume all your daily calories within a set window (like 16:8 fasting). Fasting also inhibits a cellular process called mTOR (mechanistic target of rapamycin), thus triggering a process known as autophagy, which may contribute to improved cellular health and longevity. 

Scientists believe that chronic, systemic, and low-grade inflammation is a major contributor to aging. It's an underlying process in all age-related diseases including premature skin aging, type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis, arthritis, and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's. But, according to medical microbiologist Douglas Toal, Ph.D., one of the best (and tastiest) ways to combat this time of age-accelerating inflammation is by supporting your gut with plenty of fiber-rich vegetables and fruits (particularly those high in prebiotic fiber), as well as probiotic-rich fermented foods. 

How it helps: The good bacteria in your gut thrive on fiber. When you eat fiber-rich foods, they're able to proliferate and outweigh the bad guys, promoting overall health and immune functioning. When good bacteria break down fiber, they produce anti-inflammatory compounds called short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). These SCFAs are the main source of energy for colon cells and actually help repair leaky gut by increasing the expression of tight junction proteins. This helps prevent toxins in the intestines from leaking out into the bloodstream, where they can wreak havoc on the body and lead to a cascade of chronic inflammation. 

Social connectedness is also one of the main characteristics of people living in the blue zones—the areas in the world where people have been shown to live the longest, healthiest lives. As Dan Buettner, bestselling author and founder of the blue zones, explains, "These safety nets lend financial and emotional support in times of need and give all of their members the stress-shedding security of knowing that there is always someone there for them." Building a strong social network lies at the core of living a long, happy life.

And recently, research has found that increased social contact may do wonders for your brain, potentially warding off forms of dementia such as Alzheimer's, one of the leading causes of death in the U.S. In fact, people who saw their friends almost daily were 12% less likely to develop dementia later in life than people who saw only one or two friends every few months. 

Research shows that getting regular movement into your life can help combat this in a variety of ways. According to cardiologist Joel Kahn, M.D., "The amount of activity needed to improve the response to prolonged sitting is small; even light walking two out of every 20 minutes improves glucose metabolism."

Regular exercise confers a slew of life-extending benefits, starting with helping you achieve a healthy weight, which has positive effects on nearly every aspect of your health. A recent study found that people with bigger waistlines and a high body mass index (BMI) in their 60s had greater signs of brain aging six years later. Specifically, people with bigger waists and higher BMIs were more likely to have thinning in the cortex area of the brain.

Moving your body also helps you build and maintain muscle mass, and reduced muscle mass is a telltale sign of aging in older adults. In fact, as you age, muscle wasting (sarcopenia) is associated with9 an increased risk of falls, fractures, low quality of life, and increased mortality. 

Chronic stress is straight-up toxic. Research shows11 that perceived levels of stress are associated with increased mortality in a dose-response pattern (meaning the higher the perceived stress, the greater the increased risk of death). According to Robin Berzin, M.D., unhealthy stress levels can (among many other things) impair the functioning of your immune system, increase inflammation, and turn on (or off) certain genes that affect everything from how fast you age to whether or not you will develop cancer.