Inputs by Nikita Garg, celebrity nutritionist and founder, Entech Wellness
Longevity simply means living a long life. In health and medicine, it is broken down into two main ideas:
- Lifespan: Physical length of your life – (the total number of years we live)
- Health span: Quality of your life – which means free from major chronic diseases, disabilities such that activeness, independency and mental sharpness remains as you age.
Longevity is a mix of controllable and uncontrollable factors. Genetics and God’s will is a part of uncontrollable factor but what you can control is your lifestyle choices i.e implementing fundamentals of fitness (Exercise, Nutrition and Sleep).
Life expectancy in India has risen significantly over the past three decades, increasing from approximately 58.6 years in 1990 to about 71.0 years in 2026. We don’t fear aging. We fear losing energy, independence, and clarity as we age. Most of us wants to live longer while maintaining “Good Quality of Life”. We want our every decade post 40s to be stronger, sharper and smoother. Can we beat ageing as genetics are uncontrollable? The answer is yes.
80% of how we age is lifestyle, not genetics. We are not trying to defy ageing but we are trying to age better gracefully. What we can work is on “Biological Age” than “Physical Age”
After working with busy professionals, here are SOME nutrition and fitness habits that helps you age better on “biological age”.
1. Protein + Muscle: Your Longevity Currency (True Anti-Ageing Factors)
After 30s, we tend to lose 3-5% muscle mass every decade due to a ageing process called sarcopenia. It’s the entire musculoskeletal system (muscles, bones ligaments, tendons) that gets challenged.
Nutrition: Atleast Aim for 1.2-1.6g/kg protein of lean body mass daily. Include complete proteins for muscular strength and recovery. Protein preserves and grow muscles, bones, tendons and ligaments and also has normal response to insulin that helps in maintaining steady glucose levels, this protects you from metabolic disorders
Fitness: Muscle is the organ of longevity. It regulates glucose, supports joints, and keeps you independent. Incorporate weight training and learn under certified professionals to avoid injuries. Form and technique plus exercise program is extremely important to have injury free lifts.
2. Roast your meals, not your cells in the flame of Inflammation.
Chronic inflammation is the root cause of ageing, heart diseases, cancer, brain fog and other metabolic disorders.
To get rid of excess inflammation, first put a break on triggers of inflammation. This can be achieved by stopping the use of omega-6 rich oils like sunflower, safflower in your diet and also turmeric extract curcumin can be used to stop inflammation. Additionally, one can add Omega -3s (primarily EPA) to reduce inflammation further.
Remember cutting down on excess intake of sugars can lower inflammation majorly.
- Sleep, Stress, and Meal Timing: The Hidden Habits
Poor sleep accelerates ageing. Chromic Stress fuels inflammation, breaks structural proteins like collagen of bones and skin, promotes muscles breakdown, weakens immune system (which happens due to ageing).
Ageing is a progressive, irreversible decline in tissue and cell functions that increases susceptibility to disease. Biological age reflects the actual physical of your body cells. You may be 50 year old but performing like 35 year old and that’s exactly what we mean by longevity. Adding years to your cells. Embrace ageing while respecting your biology and biochemistry. Supraphysiological methods for anti-ageing like overuse of steroids or other procedures can give anti-ageing appearance but its temporary. Example: Our heart, liver, kidneys have physiological thresholds. Administering external hormones at supra-physiological levels (above normal) can overwhelm cardiovascular compensation, potentially resulting in high BP and heart rate, cardiac and smooth muscle hypertrophy.
Our baseline Blood Pressure and Heart Rate is regulated to align with Endogenous secretions of hormones, not with exogenous excess.
Master your fundamentals, that’s the only way to succeed with longevity. Focus on healthspan which is a controllable factor as lifespan is uncertain and uncontrollable due to genetics and almighty. Live healthy, die healthy as death is inevitable.
