Dr Zac Turner reveals 10 tips for a longer life

If you’re hoping to live to 100, Dr Zac Turner has revealed the secret to living a longer and happier life.

Welcome to Ask Doctor Zac, a weekly column from news.com.au. This week Dr Zac Turner reveals how to live a longer, healthier life.

Question: Hi Dr Zac, help! I’m trying to get fit and healthy so I can live for longer seems so confusing. I google how to live a longer life and get 8,240,000,000 results – that’s way too much information for me!

I’d like to start with baby steps. Can you please tell me 10 things I should be doing right now to live to 100 (yes, I live in hope!)? – Emily, 45, NSW

Answer: Hi Emily, thanks for your question. It doesn’t have to be so difficult to feel healthy. In fact, the simpler the better! Rather than only asking Google, I recommend you speak to your GP so together you can set up your very own holistic health plan.

They can help you with organising a diet plan, tell you how often to exercise and go through your medical records to highlight any potential problems in the future.

For the sake of answering your question, here are 10 Dr Zac tips and tricks to help lead a longer, more healthy life.

Meditation has proven to improve sleep, creative thinking and increase energy. Pictured: iStock.

1. Be honest with you doctor

It seems simple, doesn’t it? But believe it or not most people will withhold information from their doctor. Especially men, with about a third of blokes deciding not to tell their doctor what’s going on. Be more proactive about your health, truly listen to what your body is telling you and take all this information to your doctor. You’ll live a longer life if you catch any warning signs early.

2. Stay away from back pain

Back pain effects about four million Aussies, which is a concerning number. The back is so important for the rest of the body. If you have serious back issues, you tend to remain fairly inactive which causes a lot more problems down the line.

To have a strong back, you must have a strong core. Try your hand at daily abdominal exercises. You could even try Yoga, it’s a great way to build strength and flexibility. If you don’t know what you’re doing at the gym then book in with a knowledgeable personal trainer to make sure you’re doing the exercises correctly, and of course if you have injuries or need specific body exercises then physiotherapists and osteopaths are a must-do.

3. You need to have seven hours of sleep every day

In fact the perfect amount of sleep is actually individual but research show that seven to eight hours is pretty spot on. Any less and you are increasing cortisol levels in your body which is a stress hormone. This can cause weight gain, and eventually obesity.

Studies have found adults who don’t get enough sleep are 89 per cent more likely to develop obesity than those with regular sleeping patterns.

4. Limit your processed food intake

You need to limit your processed food intake. I would hope you eliminate it entirely from your diet but I understand the pressures of life make it hard to do so. Processed foods negatively affect metabolism at a cellular level.

They create insulin resistance and weak mitochondria in the body which in turn cause fatigue, mood disorders and decreased concentration. Furthermore processed sugars, which are high glycaemic index (GI) nutrients, are the food equivalent of crack and stimulate many of the same addictive receptors that are causing havoc in our nation with drug addiction.

Being intimate with your partner one to two times a week can help ease anxiety and stress. Pictured: iStock

5. Have a healthy sex life

Those who have more sex have higher levels of antibodies that help to defend their body against germs, viruses and other issues. Researchers found that participants who had sex one to two times a week were less likely to get sick and had higher immunity than those having less sex.

Intimacy with your partner can help to soothe stress and anxiety by increasing the release of a chemical in your brain that revs up your pleasure and reward pathways.

6. Eat off the floor!

The three-second rule or 10-second one, depending on the state of the floor and quality of the snack, is a must. You need to think of your immune system like a muscle. It works out every time it comes into contact with a germ and builds memory to work against them.

By eating ‘dirty’ food you are ingesting friendly microbes that build our bodies’ immune defence. Friendly bacteria can support our health in a surprising number of ways, such as helping to prevent diabetes, skin infections and from developing allergies such as asthma, psoriasis and eczema.

7. If you need to lose weight, try Intermittent Fasting

The human body is a lazy machine, it is always trying its best to use the least amount of energy as possible. Intermittent fasting is all about changing our physiology from storing to utilising calories consumed, or in other words, increasing your metabolic rate.

By fasting, your blood insulin levels drop significantly which, you guessed it, facilitates fat burn. Your cells begin to repair themselves and remove waste. Human growth hormone (HGH) levels will rise, which helps burn fat and gain muscle.

Limiting processed food in your diet and opting for healthier options improve you concentration and energy levels. Pictured: iStock

8. Channel your inner monk and meditate!

Not only does your body need to be healthy, but also your mind. For all meditation newbies I recommended the Wim Hof Method. Daily Wim Hof breathing has been linked to better sleep, enhanced creativity, more focused mental wellbeing, boosted immune system, increased energy and relief of symptoms for depression.

9. Limit your alcohol intake

Remember alcohol is a poison and it causes detrimental effects on your body, and when drunk at night can really affect our sleeping patterns. If you keep up a regular drinking pattern you will cause a lot of problems in your body.

10. Ignore misinformation

The worst thing you can do for your body is to follow misinformation. I implore you to follow health advice from your doctor and not podcasters. I’m looking at you, Joe Rogan!

Emily please start slow and simple on your health journey to avoid yourself burning out. Remember, it’s a marathon not a sprint!

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Dr Zac Turner has a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Sydney. He is both a medical practitioner and a co-owner of telehealth service, Concierge Doctors. He was also a registered nurse and is also a qualified and experienced biomedical scientist along with being a PhD Candidate in Biomedical Engineering.