That is our spiritual mother, Mother Hamilton was right. I have chosen from a list of things that make you live longer according to some of the most recent scientific studies. I was struck by how many things have proven Mother to be right–some of these findings even go against current popular thinking. Such as, moderate alcohol use can be healthy—the conclusion by this large world-wide meta-study on alcohol use reported in Lancet concludes that no amount of alcohol use is considered healthy. And marriage—turns out its good for you and will make you live longer. Take a look at the list and you may be surprised how science has confirmed what Mother taught; and many the time she’s going against the tide of the times.
Say ‘Om’: Meditating even for just a few minutes each day can dramatically improve your outlook, emotions, and health.
No Amount of Alcohol Consumption is Healthy: For decades, we were told that moderate alcohol consumption can be heart healthy, but now a new study in The Lancet warns that there is no such thing as safe or healthy alcohol consumption.
Quit smoking: The single most important thing anyone can do for their health is to avoid tobacco or quit smoking.
Get hitched: Married people live longer than non-married folk, according to a study from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.
Look to a higher power: People who attend religious services at least once a week tend to outlive those who go less often, a study suggests.
Start a gratitude journal: Grateful people feel healthier and report fewer aches and pains, according to a study in Personality and Individual Differences.
Find your calling: Find a calling that gives you purpose, you’ll live longer according to a study in the Journal of Health Psychology.
Give back for the right reasons: Volunteers who lend a hand for selfless reasons live longer than those who don’t volunteer, a new study shows.
Go Dark: Chocoholics rejoice! Dark chocolate—with a minimum of 70 percent cacao—can lower stress and inflammation and improve mood, memory, and immunity, according to two new studies presented at the Experimental Biology 2018.
Stand your ground: Don’t back down, research shows that a stubborn disposition [read strong will] may give you an important edge—a longer life.
Order chicken instead of steak: Eating red meat increases the likelihood of dying from cancer, heart disease, respiratory disease, stroke, diabetes, infections, kidney disease, and liver disease. On the other hand, eating white meat like fish and chicken reduces the risk.
Don’t vape: The latest research shows that adolescent users get just as much nicotine with e-cigs as they do with traditional ones. And another new study found that vaping may modify the DNA in the mouths of users, which could increase their cancer risk. [Vaping is new since Mother taught, but her admonition, “no smoking” holds here.]
Enjoy a cup of joe… or 8! Drinking coffee (even as much as eight cups a day!)—decreases your risk of dying from all causes, according to a study in JAMA Internal Medicine. However, if you get headaches, an irregular heartbeat, or gastric upset from drinking coffee, just skip it [Mother drank coffee, nowhere near 8 cups a day though].
C’mon get happy: A recent study from Harvard found that people who scored highest on measures of optimism had a 16 percent lower risk of death from cancer, a 38 percent lower risk of death from heart disease and respiratory disease, and a 39 percent lower risk of dying from stroke.
While Mother did not teach us to eat chocolate or drink coffee, she did enjoy both; I know she would agree it is not beneficial for everyone if they have negative side effects. She asked us to promise not to drink alcohol, smoke, use recreational drugs and that we have no sex without benefit of marriage—as it turns out, Mother was right!