It’s been awhile since I had the distinct pleasure of addressing another asinine list. The thing about this list, entitled “9 Harmless Habits That Age You” and brought to you by Yahoo Health, is that it makes sense. Oh, and there is elaboration and useful suggestions. While I adore ripping stupid lists apart, there’s so much useful information here that I’m turning the snark way down.
It pretty much goes without saying that smoking cigarettes and frying your skin in the sun make you older, so kudos for quitting and slathering on the sunscreen religiously. But if you’re trying to turn back the clock—or at least slow it down a little—don’t overlook these other habits that may be sabotaging your efforts.
1. You keep your college bedtime.
We’re not saying you need a perfect 8 hours every single night, but make sleep a priority more often and your body will thank you. Everyone’s sleep needs are different; to find out what yours are, sleep experts recommend you turn off the alarm clock when you’re well rested, and see how long you naturally sleep. (Most people need 7 to 8 hours.)
All right, so make sure you get enough sleep. Of course, some people work multiple jobs or suffer from insomnia (or both). I can’t think of the last time I got seven hours of sleep … I’m curious enough that I’m probably going to look at my old Facebook status updates. My doctor told me to keep a “sleep journal” to keep track of my sleep patterns, but I don’t need to thanks to Facebook.
2. You have a soft spot for sweets.
It’s not easy to eliminate sugar completely, but limiting added sugar to no more than 10% of total calories can help. If you’re a 45-year-old woman of average height (5-foot-4), that’s 160 calories (or 10 teaspoons) from added sugar—about the number in one 12-ounce can of Coca-Cola or six Hershey’s Kisses. By comparison, the average American consumes 31 teaspoons per day of added sugar, or the equivalent of 465 calories. Watch for stealthy sugar in unexpected foods, like salad dressing. Many prepared foods contain hefty amounts of sugar, but it’s hidden under aliases—including barley malt, corn syrup, dextrose, fruit juice concentrate, maltose, maple syrup, molasses, and turbinado—on ingredient panels.
Damn, no more Ben and Jerry’s runs for me. But seriously, I went through my cupboards looking for some of those words I’ve never heard before on ingredient labels (yes, I’ll have some turbinado in my coffee, please) and it was kind of scary.
3. You’re stressed more often than not.
Stress will never go away completely, but how you manage everyday blips can keep hormones on a more even—and healthy—keel. Deep breathing is the top antistress pick of Prevention advisor Andrew Weil, MD: He makes time for it at least twice a day. “It only takes 2 minutes,” he says. “I do it in the morning, when I’m falling asleep in the evening, and anytime I feel upset.” Try it: Exhale strongly through the mouth, making a whoosh sound. Breathe in quietly through the nose for a count of 4. Hold your breath for a count of 7, then exhale with the whoosh for a count of 8. Repeat the cycle 3 more times.
Stress sucks. It happens to everyone. Learning how to deal with it without doing stupid things like drinking too much or Ben and Jerry’s runs is key. And the deep breathing thing? It helps. Trust me on that.
4. You only exercise to lose weight.
Choose any activity you enjoy—be it walking, cycling, or dancing—and aim for a minimum of 20 to 25 minutes a day. Break it down, if you have to, into two 10-minute sessions. Slowly increase the frequency, duration, and intensity in small increments. If you miss a day, don’t let it become a habit; just pick up again the next day.
I don’t know about you, but I’m a binge exerciser. I’ll get it into my head that I need to exercise, and I’ll be really diligent about walking or using the elliptical or whatever for a week, maybe two, then I’ll just stop making it a priority. This is incredibly important.
5. You blast your iPod.
To ageproof your iPod, keep the volume as low as possible. Use noise-canceling earbuds to block out ambient sounds, reducing your need to jack up the volume. Wear earplugs when you’re around other loud noises too, like the garbage disposal, coffee grinder, lawn mower, etc.
The iPod point is probably self-explanatory (my mother has ragged me my entire life about turning my music down, I do it to my daughter, she’ll probably do it to her kids someday), but the other loud noises mentioned would have flown beneath my radar.
6. You never see your girlfriends.
Your friends keep you young—simple as that. So if hectic schedules keep you apart, consider carving a more permanent place in your schedule for friend time. Take advantage of Facebook or e-mail groups to stay in touch on a more frequent basis—even clicking through and commenting on a pal’s recently uploaded vacation photos can help you feel closer.
100% true. Also worth noting is that you can become close friends with once casual acquaintances through Facebook. If I get a friend request from someone and we have 78 friends in common, it’s a pretty safe assumption that we went to the same high school. There are several instances where someone I never spoke to in high school is now someone I’d consider a friend because of the relationship we’ve built up over Facebook. Strange but true.
7. You eat veggies—but not daily.
ODing on veggies a couple of days a week or month—and skipping them the rest of the time—doesn’t do your body any favors. To truly maximize their age-defying benefits, aim to eat antioxidants every 4 hours or so or with every meal.
Also, mixing it up is a good thing. There are tons of vegetables out there, some of them pretty exotic and regional (okra, for example, is really good … it’s not a staple of the New England diet that’s typically offered at our grocery stores, but it’s really good), so don’t just get stuck in a “broccoli and carrot” rut.
8. You’ve shunned all fat from your diet.
Cutting out artery-clogging saturated and trans fats is a heart-healthy move, but when it comes to your health and vitality, equally slashing unsaturated fats, like those found in fish, nuts, and olive oil, is like throwing the proverbial baby out with the bathwater. One kind, omega-3 fatty acids, is the ultimate anti-aging fat, essential for protecting your brain, heart, bones, joints, skin, and more. Another kind, monounsaturated, can lower bad LDL cholesterol, raise cardio-protective HDL cholesterol, and decrease your risk of atherosclerosis.
As the article also says, “Fat isn’t inherently evil.” Like everything else, it’s all about moderation. Well, almost everything else. Keep reading.
9. You can’t recall when you last had sex.
Yep, sex feels good and does wonders for your mood, but it’s also fantastically great for your health. Research shows that people with active sex lives have stronger immune systems, less pain, a lower cancer risk, healthier hearts, and less stress. The best news: It can even make you look younger—up to 12 years, a study shows.
Twelve years? All right, that’s it. I need to find me a boyfriend, like, stat.
I think there’s actually a lot of food for thought here, and I plan on actually *gulp* reproducing this list and taping it to my bathroom mirror or something.
Do you find this list to be useful?
