The Last 15 Years: What You Eat TODAY Matters

We all understand life expectancy, the average age that men and women die. But what about health expectancy, the quality of our lives before we die…

• What if you couldn’t remember your loved ones and they had to become your full time caregivers?
• What if managing your diabetes medication made it worrisome to step out of your routine, try new foods or travel.
• What if instead of playing sports or volunteering, you spent your afternoons in retirement waiting in doctor’s offices or pharmacies?
• What if most conversations with friends were about ailments and comparing medication side effects instead of your latest adventure?

Tracking lifespan averages feels to me like a spectator sport, hoping that I will beat the odds but abdicating any role that my choices may have in determining the outcome. After watching many die too soon after years of failing health, often in pain and burdened with expensive treatment and care options, I for one want to live fully until I die. That is why I choose to eat a plant-based diet.

Quantity of Years: Long Life

Living a long life is a good place to start. What can we expect?

• Over the last century, the average life expectancy has improved significantly. In 1900 it was 47.3 years; by 2010, it had risen to 78.7 years (CDC/NCHS). Most of the early improvements came from the reduction of infectious disease and improvements in infant/childhood mortality. (22% of those born in 1900 died before age 10). Since the middle of the last century, medical procedures have helped those with chronic health conditions live longer, though not necessarily better.
• For the first time in decades, average life expectancy has been trending down from prior years due in part to the growing opioid crisis.
• ‘When life expectancy was short, death was often the result of a recent infection. Now, death is the result of chronic health condition. More people with disease and disability survive. This has led to a lengthening of life but a worsening of health‘.
• The length of our life may also have to do with our Telomeres; these caps on DNA at the ends of our chromosomes protect our cells from aging. Over time, they naturally wear down, get shorter and no longer can reproduce or protect our cells. Short telomeres are linked to chronic and degenerative diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s, and early death. Our lifestyle choices can help to improve the length of our telomeres and help us slow the aging process.
• The US ranks 34th in life expectancy, 4 years behind the leader Japan and behind other countries like Cuba, Lebanon and Costa Rica.

Quality of Life: Good Health

What about the quality of our life and our health expectancy? When does health start to fail us?

• Chronic health conditions can form during childhood and even in the womb. However, we may not experience outward symptoms of aging for decades.
• Many chronic health conditions are appearing at younger ages. For example, what used to be calls Adult-onset Diabetes is now called Type II Diabetes since more frequently diagnosed in children and teens.
• Our Healthspan refers to the ‘length of time we spend free of the costly and harmful conditions of aging. As more of us live longer with more chronic health issues, there is a Silver Tsunami of chronic diseases and disabilities of aging. In the US we are spending 19% of our GDP on healthcare and it is continuing to rise’.
• Let’s do the math. By measuring the first serious occurrence of common chronic diseases (such as heart disease, diabetes, cancers, strokes, Alzheimer’s, and lung disease), the World Health Organization developed an indicator – HALE (healthy life expectancy) to identify the age we will likely experience serious health issues before we die. That number can vary greatly based on where and how we live; some studies have shown health expectancy gaps from 8-27 years. In the US, with an average life expectancy of 78 and a typical first occurrence of serious disease at 63, we have an average of 15 years to look forward to declining health where health issues limit the quality of our life. For simplicity, let’s call it the last 15.  Would you rather spend your golden years comparing gall bladder or by-pass scars or going on a hike or playing your favorite sport? Just when you are ready to enjoy more time with family and friends, will your health support or limit your choices?
•  The Blue Zones are great examples of aging communities around the world that not only live long as Centenarians and beyond but live well. They rely on incorporating exercise into everyday activities such as walking to the market or gardening, manage sources of stress, avoid smoking and limit alcohol, get a good night’s sleep, ensure their life has a purpose and eat mostly a plant-based diet (no surprise, it is my blog after all).

So what if you…

Transition now to a whole food plant-based lifestyle, before the last 15.

• Your health will likely improve sooner rather than later. No need to wait till the last 15. Our food choices can slow, stop and even reverse many chronic health conditions, now and in the future. What we eat can lower cholesterol and blood pressure, reverse and prevent heart disease, GERD, Diabetes, some cancers, etc. By eating the right foods and working with our doctors to ensure proper care along the way,  we may be able to eliminate the cause of many of these conditions, lessen the need for medications and lower the risk of surgeries in the future.
• Your palate will thank you. There is no better time than right now to get back in the kitchen and learn to cook healthy, delicious and affordable food. Remember how good fresh ingredients can taste. Try familiar foods prepared in new ways in less time and with more flavors. Play with your food.
• You could be a role model. You could help to break the pattern of chronic diseases that runs in your family by making better food choices at the dinner table.
• You’ll help to save the planet. How would it feel if some day your grandchild thanked you for caring about the planet since animal agriculture is a leading cause of climate change?
• You will personally save hundreds of animals each year. In addition to saving the lives of animals on land, by eating fish, we are depleting ocean life and killing our oceans.  Know how your food is sourced and the consequences of our food choices. Use World End of Fishing Day as motivation to try zucchini for your fish tacos and crab cakes or trumpet oyster mushrooms for your scallops.
• You will save money. With lower medical expenses and more affordable grocery bills, you’ll have more money to enjoy in retirement.
• Oh, one more thing, your life expectancy will likely be longer and the quality of those years better.

I was always a person who did mazes from the end to the beginning as a child. In my coaching and throughout my professional life, I always started with the end in mind, the desired outcome. Instead of just targeting a number as a destination, what if we add quality of the last 15 years to our goals. Whatever your age, this is a great day to commit (or recommit) to a plant-based lifestyle.