5 practices for living longer & staying healthier

Want to live longer and be healthier? Here's five ways to help you do exactly that.

• Cutting stress can help your body heal faster, your mind function better, your digestion work better — and make every moment brighter and more pleasurable.
• Studies have shown that those who practice meditation have a lower risk of death from heart disease.
• Relaxation takes many forms, including spending time with friends, walking in nature and listening to your favourite music.

• The benefits of water are vast — topping off your tank with five to eight glasses a day can cut your risk of a deadly heart attack by as much as 54 percent.
• After age 60, your sense of thirst diminishes, so you may not even realize you're thirsty.
• Getting enough water can also ease constipation, boost flagging energy and even lower your risk of cancers of the breast, prostate and large intestine.
• By sipping more water throughout the day — and enjoying herbal tea and plenty of water-rich fruits and veggies — you'll give every cell in your body the fluids it needs.

• Having three meals and two or three snacks a day is a great way to fit in all the nutrition your body needs.
• You'll keep your blood sugar lower and steadier to guard against diabetes and heart conditions associated with blood sugar problems.
• You'll avoid big portions and a starve-and-binge pattern that can lead to extra weight.
• And you'll have more chances to break bread with friends and family — something that can be as nutritious for the mind and spirit as food is for your body.
• Let moderation replace deprivation. You'll be happier and healthier.

• It's great to eat organic when you can. But it's even more important to avoid the common food additives and ingredients that are potent health wreckers.
• Popular things to avoid include excess sodium, trans fats, saturated fat, sweeteners and refined carbs.
• These five additives raise your blood pressure and "bad" LDL cholesterol, increase your risk of heart disease and put your blood sugar on a roller coaster. They also fire up body-wide chronic inflammation.

• Insomnia — annoying, exhausting and mysterious — becomes a common experience as we age.
• Sleep patterns change radically after age 55, when your body clock resets itself and levels of melatonin and growth hormone drop.
• Medical conditions, prescription or over-the-counter drugs, eating patterns, exercise habits, time outdoors and your bedtime routine all play important roles in your sleep as well.
• Because we often don't know how to adjust, an estimated 41 percent of women 80 and older experience insomnia, as do 23 percent of men 70 and older.
• Feeling sleepy all the time can be annoying and dangerous.
• Experts say it's still possible to be well-rested if you work with, not against, your changing sleep cycles.

Living longer is tricky, but it isn't impossible. Getting the sleep you need, eating right and avoiding dangerous food additives are all great ways to start getting healthy today.