We used to believe that our genes determined our health. Some incorrectly continue to blame their genes. Big mistake. It proposes that my life and health are not determined by my lifestyle and I need more medicine to provide a safety net when I get sick.
Now we know otherwise: how you live, how you arrange your life, is the real foundation of your health (or lack thereof) and it plays a far greater role than your genetic history. A famous Danish study of 2,872 identical twin sets for almost three decades found that our genes’ influence on health or disease is actually only 20- to 26-percent.{Herskind, 1996 #1687} That means that 75- to 80-percent of what affects your well-being is not genetic.
Multiple other studies show that lifestyle benefits accrue no matter what age you start. This dismisses the second great laggard myth: it is too late for a change to benefit me. It is never too late; the Jerusalem Longitudinal Cohort Study showed benefits from starting an exercise program even as old as 85 years. You don’t have any valid reasons not to act. Get with the program.
In other words, you’re in the driver’s seat. Your behavior determines most of your health and longevity—what I call your “health-span.”
