A Social Determinants Of Health paper found “40% of an individual’s health is determined by socioeconomic factors such as education, occupation, or income,” compared to only 30% determined by lifestyle choices like not drinking or eating well. That isn’t to say you shouldn’t try your best to be healthy, or that abandoning all self-care is advisable (hey, 30% is still a big number). But don’t let the current longevity fad food you; ageing, getting sick, and yes, even dying happens at unfair rates, but it’s not a failure made possible by your lack of “optimisation.” It is not our job to hustle our way out of mortality. Experts roundly recommend the same boring and reliable advice: eat as well as you can, sleep as well as possible, try to avoid stress, and exercise. But don’t feel bad because you’re not intermittent fasting or eating £40 mushrooms or, you know, injecting your son’s blood.

Cancer survivors can reduce their ongoing risk of death by sticking to diet and exercise guidelines recommended by the American Cancer Society, a new study suggests. Non-smoking survivors of obesity-related cancers had an overall lower risk of death if they adopted the ACS lifestyle recommendations following their treatment, according to findings published Thursday in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

In a landmark study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers tracked participants for up to 47 years to assess how five key risk factors—high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, smoking, and bodyweight—affect longevity and health. They found that eliminating these risks by age 50 led to significantly longer, healthier lives. Notably, even changes made in one's late 50s had major benefits: quitting smoking could add 2.4 years, and improving four of five factors could extend life by over five years. As the researchers concluded, "The absence of five classic risk factors at 50 years of age was associated with more than a decade greater life expectancy... Persons who modified hypertension and smoking in midlife had the most additional life-years free of cardiovascular disease and death from any cause."

Lifestyle changes boost longevity for cancer survivors, study suggests. American Cancer Society updated its nutrition and physical activity guidelines in 2022. The new recommendations emphasize maintaining healthy weight, exercising regularly, eating healthy and limiting alcohol intake. Researchers analyzed the lifestyle habits of more than 3,700 participants in a long-term study.

More steps, less sitting may lower risk of death in female cancer survivors. Benefits maxed out at 5,000 to 6,000 steps per day and one hour of moderate to vigorous physical activity a day. Even walking fewer steps or exercising less than an hour per day could help.