A healthy lifestyle can reduce the risk of death by 62% in people with disease-prone genetics

Regular physical activity and a healthy diet reduce the impact on the risk of early death. (Photo: Freepik)

Many studies have demonstrated the association between a healthy lifestyle and longevity. Others highlighted the impact of the genetic component on longevity. Now, a study recently published in the scientific journal BMJ Evidence Based Medicine has shown that even if your genetics put you at higher risk of early death, a healthy lifestyle can help you significantly combat it.

To assess how genetics and lifestyle affect longevity, researchers from the School of Public Health at Zhejian University School of Medicine in China analyzed data from more than 350,000 people and information about their genetics, education, socioeconomic status, habits and disease history.

Each individual analyzed received a polygenetic risk score, which summarizes the presence of multiple genes that impact human life expectancy. Participants also received a score based on how well they adhered to healthy lifestyle principles, including smoking, alcohol consumption, diet quality, sleep quota and physical activity levels. They were then followed for an average of 13 years to see if they had a short, intermediate or long life expectancy.

The results showed that everyone, regardless of genetic risks, was 78% more likely to die early if they had an unhealthy lifestyle. But people with a genetic risk for a short life span and an unhealthy lifestyle were twice as likely to die early as those without a genetic risk and with healthier lifestyles.

On the other hand, adherence to a healthy lifestyle could mitigate this risk by approximately 62% and increase the life expectancy of individuals at genetic risk by up to 5.5 years.

“This study elucidates the fundamental role of a healthy lifestyle in mitigating the impact of genetic factors in reducing life expectancy,” the authors conclude. “Public health policies to improve healthy lifestyles would serve as potent complements to conventional health care and mitigate the influence of genetic factors on human life expectancy.”

What to do

But what does it mean to have a healthy lifestyle? In the study, researchers were able to identify four factors associated with the greatest impact on the risk of early death. They are: not smoking, practicing physical activity regularly, getting adequate sleep and following a healthy diet.

Adequate sleep was defined as sleeping seven to eight hours per night. Regarding physical activity, current guidelines recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity and two days of strength training per week for adults.

One limitation noted by the researchers is that this was an observational study, meaning it could determine associations but could not say for sure whether behaviors were the direct cause of changes in life expectancy. Furthermore, lifestyle was only assessed at one point in the study and lifestyle choices may vary throughout life. The participants were also all of European descent, which may limit the generalizability of the results.