National treasure Betty White recently turned 99 years old. And since almost everyone wants to get within striking distance of a century on earth – and since ABSOLUTELY everyone adores Betty White – let’s see what longevity tips we can get from her and experts.

After all, she’s been famous for longer than most people live. So who’s going to argue?

1. Stay positive. “Enjoy life,” says the “Golden Girls” star. “Accentuate the positive, not the negative.” And, in fact, research backs this up. Having a good attitude can add years to your life.
2. Keep your humor and perspective. “Don’t take yourself too seriously,” she says. “I try to see the funny side.” Again, research backs her up. Laughing and smiling release all kinds of good-for-you reactions in our bodies and brains.
3. Volunteer your time and passion. White is well-known for her love of pets and activism for animal rights.
4. Embrace the aging process. It helps keep our attitudes positive. And look what it did for Betty? She started “Golden Girls” in her 60s.
5. Stay active. Betty provided the voice of “Bitey White” in “Toy Story 4” just two years ago. “You just keep plugging away,” she says. “You don’t give up.”

More people are living to 100 than ever before, and life expectancy keeps getting longer. In 2015, some 72,000 Americans were centenarians – up from 50,000 in the year 2000.

In addition to Betty’s tips, we can live longer and better in general if we eat the right foods, manage stress, and exercise regularly.

Who’s your role model for extreme longevity? Would you like to live to be 100? Let’s talk about it!

Do You Have Trouble Breathing?

Try Iyengar Yoga

Iyengar yoga relies on the study of pranayama (which means “breath control”) and asanas (which refers to posture). Developed and named after a yoga practitioner, Iyengar uses over 175 asanas and 14 variations of pranayamas. Both asanas and pranayamas progress from the simple to the difficult so that both beginners and advanced yoga practitioners can benefit from doing the exercises. Iyengar yoga is also designed so that any beginner can progress and advance through the various levels safely. Flexibility and strength are developed in the beginning poses and are, therefore, in place before the more advanced poses of Iyengar yoga are attempted.

Yoga Aligns the Body for Better Health

One of the reasons that people use Iyengar yoga—other than the fact that it’s a great place for a beginner to start—is because it has been carefully put together to encourage correct body alignment. When doing the exercises, your body should develop in an anatomically balanced way. This helps prevent injury while doing the exercises. It should also help keep pain completely out of your yoga routine—something that can’t always be said about other forms of exercise. Iyengar yoga aims to work around the fact that we all have different strengths and weaknesses. Some may begin with muscular strength already developed, while another may have lost muscle tone to do ill health or inactivity, for example. Iyengar yoga also incorporates the use of various props to offer support during different positions. You are likely familiar with some of these props if you’ve ever attended a yoga class: blocks, blankets, and straps are three of the most commonly used aids. By heavily emphasizing correct anatomical alignment, Iyengar yoga has been shown to be therapeutic above and beyond other forms of exercise. This yoga practice has been refined specifically to undo aches and pains caused by postural problems and weaknesses in tendons and joints that lead to inflammation. This type of yoga has been used to treat a number of health conditions, including some serious chronic diseases—but we’ll get to that in a moment. The other two points about Iyengar yoga that make it a powerful healing tool is that the exercises have all been sequenced—meaning that they have a cumulative effect. The more you practice Iyengar yoga, the stronger and better you’re likely to feel. Postures are held for increasing amounts of time to let them have more advanced beneficial effects on the body.

Breathing & Proper Movement Together Heal the Body

Once the basic asanas are learned, Iyengar yoga encourages you to learn the proper principles of breathing. Breathing correctly while you exercise will help complement the improvements you’re making in your flexibility and strength. Breathing properly also improves your lung capacity. Other benefits from practicing pranayamas include boosting the capacity of your circulatory system, creating a greater efficiency in your respiratory system, and balancing your nervous system. Pranayamas can initiate calmness as you activate all of your internal organs through each different pose. Breathing also engages your mind and senses and brings them into the exercises so that you benefit from being in a meditative state as well. In essence, practicing the pranayamas will give you energy while removing stress and anxiety from both your mind and body.

Iyengar Yoga & Respiratory Troubles

Now that you’ve had a quick crash course in what Iyengar yoga is all about, let’s take a look at what some recent studies have to say about it. First up is a trial that looked at the effects of Iyengar yoga on patients with chronic respiratory diseases They were all attending lung-transplant clinics. Twenty-five patients who had been diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) were enrolled in a 12-week Iyengar yoga class. The classes ran twice a week. Doctors were recruited to perform formal physical and clinical assessments on the candidates before they were enrolled. At the outset and conclusion of the study, patients were asked to complete the “Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Chronic Respiratory Questionnaire (CRQ) and Health Utilities Index (HUI).” The researchers also recorded medications that the patients were taking and other clinical parameters. Then they set about analyzing their data. At the end of the 12-week period, the researchers found that the patients showed significant positive changes in their HADS anxiety and CRQ fatigue scores. The patients also recorded “clinically important” changes in pain symptoms, emotional health, improvements in breathing, better energy levels, better mobility, and better quality of sleep. In fact, according to the research team, some participants were even able to assert that they had “an overall feeling of wellbeing and an excellent amount of energy.” This is quite remarkable, given that these patients were attending a lung-transplant clinic. The researchers concluded that their findings suggest that Iyengar yoga has significant potential to produce health benefits in COPD patients. Now, let’s look at one more trial. This was a study conducted at the Harris College of Nursing and Health Sciences in Fort Worth Texas. The research team set out to evaluate the benefits of yoga in a population of older, overweight adults who are at risk for cardiovascular disease. A total of 42 participants were enrolled, and each began an eight-week Iyengar yoga program that included two 90-minute classes and five 30-minute home sessions per week. All of the participants were asked to complete weekly logs and a questionnaire at the end of the study. The researchers found four major themes in the participants’ responses. Practicing yoga: 

• Helped 14% of participants stick with dietary goals • Improved overall physical function and capacity for 83% of participants

• Improved sleep quality in 21% of participants 

• Reduced stress and anxiety levels and increased calmness in 83% of participants 

The researchers concluded that Iyengar yoga may have the following additional benefits: improved physical function, a better mental and emotional state,and better sleep quality. All of these factors together make yoga useful in the prevention and management of chronic disease. One final trial looked at the benefits of yoga exercise on chronic neck pain. Researchers from the Department of Internal and Integrative Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany recruited 18 people. All suffered from non-specific chronic neck pain. This study aimed to investigate the perceived influence of yoga on body perception and psychological and/or social aspects of life for these 18 patients. Over a nine-week period, the participants attended weekly 90-minutes Iyengar yoga sessions. In this somewhat unusual trial, the participants were asked to draw their necks and shoulders to reflect how they felt about their bodies before and after completing the yoga sessions.The researchers also used interviews to explore how the participants felt about their bodies, their emotional statuses, and their everyday lives and coping skills. Participants reported improvements in five different areas: cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and social. The participants developed a stronger sense of body awareness through yoga. This was evident in their post-yoga body drawings. The participants also reported that they felt like they could better control their health. Yoga helped the participants accept their pain and its resulting burdens. They spoke of being able to better use coping mechanisms. Finally, they reported positive changes in their social lives, becoming more active and engaged in their communities. The researchers concluded that it was likely an increased body awareness triggered by the yoga sessions that led to the participants’ reduced pain levels and increased coping abilities.

Lawrence Marcuson

2670 Charles Ct NW
Rochester, Minnesota

5072023894

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