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Stress Is One of the Best Longevity Hacks—Scientifically, It’s Your Perception Of It That Matters
Stop demonizing stress; it’ll probably make you live longer.
There’s a lot of conversation about longevity recently. Don’t get me wrong — it’s everything. I take my nicotinamide riboside daily, don’t drink alcohol, and wear SPF. But within the conversation on longevity, there’s a misconception surrounding stress. It’s always “stress less!” “stress ages you!”. While that’s true sometimes, stress doesn’t need to be so demonized. The truth is: Stress is actually beneficial for longevity.
Longevity 101
Longevity = living a long time in a healthy state, aka your healthspan. While there is a significant genetic influence in terms of how long you live, your lifestyle choices also have the power to turn certain genes on that can influence your lifespan. You may have heard, “Your genetics load the gun. Your lifestyle pulls the trigger.” And that’s why the discussion on longevity is important. You need to know what habits and behaviors are detrimental to longevity, and what are helpful.
Some habits that are good for longevity: Whole food diet, 8 hours sleep, targeted supplements that combat any deficiencies and increase NAD+, exercise, social connection.
