According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the average life expectancy in the U.S. has dropped to 76.4 years. To increase a person’s longevity, Dr. Osborn shared with Fox News five daily habits he recommends his patients practice to live a long and healthy life.
1. Assume responsibility for your own health
Most people rely on their doctors or health information found on the internet and do not self-monitor their own bodies. Dr. Osborn advises people to become more proactive in discovering risks for themselves and to closely listen to their bodies when they sense something is wrong. This can help catch early stages of fatal diseases and potentially save lives.
"Don’t think that your doctor is going to find all your risk factors and save you from a heart attack or stroke — more often than not, that doesn’t happen," he warned. "These are silent killers that can do their damage before someone experiences symptoms."
2. Take these 6 blood tests—and take them seriously
Dr. Osborn says the first step in prolonging your life is to identify the risk factors to prevent heart attacks and strokes. Laboratory testing will help identify risk factors associated with fatal diseases. Here are six blood tests Osborn recommends:
- Lipid Profile: provides a rough ratio of “good” to “bad” cholesterol
- Vertical Auto Profile: a cholesterol, lipid and lipoprotein test that measures all the components of a standard lipid profile and segments cholesterol into subtypes
- C-Reactive Protein: patients who suffer from obesity and metabolic syndrome should take this test because of their elevated CRP Levels, which is a risk factor for fatal diseases such as coronary heart disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes and atherogenic dyslipudenia
- Homocysteine: elevated homocysteine levels are associated with heart attacks, strokes, Alzheimer’s disease and osteoporosis.
- Hemoglobin A1C: measures the control of blood sugar levels
- Vitamin D3: Vitamin D3 deficiency is associated with stroke, insulin resistance, Alzheimer’s dementia, coronary artery disease and cancer.
