Rethinking Living to 100

"If you are like most people, the thought of longevity means focusing on your physical health. And usually, that boils down to diet to optimize physical health. But did you know there is something even more important we should focus on? Our social health. The whispers about our social connections being a key to living healthy to 100 are becoming screams."

"That's right. Ken Stern, the co-creator of the Longevity Project and host of Century Lives, argues that we need a cultural rewrite if we want to live a healthy life to 100. A key is how we value later-life contribution, structure our neighborhoods, and tell the story of aging itself. Our longevity cannot be thought of as simply due to a new medical breakthrough. We must treat social connection like exercise and diet. Plan it, schedule it, and build environments that make it easy."

Longevity depends heavily on social health rather than solely on physical health or diet. Strong, routine social connections and environments designed for belonging consistently correlate with longer, healthier lives. Social interaction should be scheduled and prioritized like exercise and diet to maintain wellbeing. Work should be redesigned to provide purpose and structure through part-time, project-based, or job-share roles. Mixing generations through intergenerational programs and intentionally designed neighborhoods strengthens daily belonging. Technology can coordinate connections and then be used to meet in person to compound the benefits. Communities with everyday practices of belonging demonstrate improved health and lifespan outcomes.

Read at Psychology Today