Medical experts say genes are not the only factor that matters when it comes to living a long life.
A new study published in Nature Medicine found that environmental factors play an outsized role in how long we live. Looking at data from nearly half a million people in the U.K., researchers at Oxford University discovered genetics explained less than 2% of the difference in people’s risk of death. On the other hand, environmental factors contributed 17% of the disparity.
The authors of the study attempted to identify patterns in people who died prematurely, or before the age of 75. They also assessed biological aging markers in a smaller sample of roughly 45,000 individuals.
The study found that smoking, socioeconomic status, physical activity levels, and living conditions had the most significant impact on a person’s biological age and their risk of early death.
The good news?
All but two of the 25 individual environmental factors the researchers examined can be altered through behavior changes.
While genes certainly play a role in our lifespan, researchers say our environment has an immense role in how our genes express themselves.
Austin Argentieri, a research fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital and lead author of the new study, told Yahoo!Life that even if you are genetically predisposed to potentially life-shortening diseases, “in most cases, you can mitigate that risk through lifestyle, behavior, or taking different drugs or treatments.”
So, what are some of the most effective changes you can make to increase your odds of a long life?
- Avoid smoking.
- Get frequent, restful sleep.
- Stay physically active.
- Eat a healthy and balanced diet.
“Someone put a comment on our paper, saying ‘genetics loads the dice, but it’s up to us to play our hand,’” said Argentieri.