Here we are – a new year – and one of my favorite times of the year for reflection and setting intentions (though I prefer doing this on a quarterly basis). Over the last few years, I’ve really made it a focus to think about Healthspan, which is a bit different from the Lifespan/Longevity conversation circling around, well, everywhere, these days.

What the heck is the difference, you ask??

Lifespan is the number of years we live. I’m shooting for 100+ (and HUGE shoutout to my Grandma, who turns 101 today!!)

Healthspan, though, is even cooler! This is how WELL we live. How many of those years we remain free from dis-ease. I’m shooting for many, many of those 100 plus years feeling pretty darn good in my body!

What’s really fascinating to me is how much control we actually have over these things. Unfortunately, our lifestyles don’t support a robust healthspan, and the average American lives 12 years of their life with dis-eases. Want the good news, though?? Great, cause you know I’m gonna share it anyway:

Most of our chronic illnesses (medical journals point to 85%) are due to a sedentary lifestyle, poor nutrition and other lifestyle factors. Which means- they are within our power to change!!

So what the heck can we do to increase our healthspan???

Five factors for a longer and healthier lifespan, per the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health:

Healthy diet – DASH, MIND, Mediterranean. Vitamin and mineral supplementation. There are lots of tools out there and different ones work for different people. I find the most success with a protein pacing diet with a focus on Mediterranean style meals.

Regular exercise – this lowers your risk of heart disease, metabolic disease, osteoporosis, certain types of cancer and cognitive decline. Aim for 150 minutes a week of moderate activity and include 2 days of strength training, at minimum.

Healthy weight – This is so individualized, but what is important for EVERYONE, is decreasing the amount of visceral fat (the unhealthy kind around our organs). I focus on cellular detoxing to help with this.

Not smoking – I mean, we know this, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to quit. Investing in the resources you need to support you on the journey is worth every penny and minute of your time!! If you’re ready take this step this year, I am cheering you on, friend!!

Moderate alcohol – Research finds that moderate drinking means 1 drink daily for women and two drinks daily for men. However, much research also suggests that ANY amount of alcohol increases our risks of cancer. So, where are you starting and where can you cut down? Anyone else doing dry January with me this year???

Other things that I focus on in my life include maintaining lean muscle mass (again, protein pacing and strength training), activating autophagy, which is our cells’ natural cleansing process(again, cellular cleansing), supplementing with the right vitamins and minerals for my body, controlling blood sugar levels (see my previous post on CGM use) and getting a daily dose of antioxidants (I love Moringa for this!).

Do I think we should all go nuts this January and try all these things at once? No, I don’t think that’s gonna work out very well for us. Been there, done that… But I do think there is such significant possibility for us all to improve our healthspan, really really improve it, by committing to one small actionable change at a time, sticking to it, and then adding another one when our first change becomes a well integrated part of our lives.

I’d love to hear what you’ve learned about improving your healthspan and what commitments you’re making this year.

(If you’re looking for some great background info on this topic, check this out: https://nutritionsource.hsph.harvard.edu/healthy-longevity/)

Cheers to a healthy journey, friends

~Jess