Find out how you could increase your odds of becoming a centenarian by 62%.

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I love watching news stories about people turning 100-plus and hearing what they attribute their longevity to.

And of course, some highlight staying active and eating a healthy diet.

a photo of various types of fruits and vegetables

Photo:MEDITERRANEAN/Getty Images

All of this highlights how genetics play some role in longevity.

Weve also reported on how certain lifestyle factors can impact longevity.

Few studies, though, include people ages 80 and olderuntil now.

Lets see what they found.

How Was This Study Conducted?

There ended up being a total of 5,222 participants.

About 62% of them were women and 38% were men.

The average age was 94.

Centenarians were classified as cases.

This second group was classified as controls.

This put the matching ratio at one centenarian for every four controls (1-to-4).

What Does This Study Suggest?

The possible points given were reduced for the HLS-100, as were the groupings.

Researchers used becoming a centenarian with a relatively healthy status as an outcome.

This is important because longevity doesnt necessarily equate to a good quality of life.

The question this now brings up is, did certain variables have more influence on living to 100?

Alcohol [intake] was not associated [with living to 100] on its own.

How Does This Apply to Real Life?

Fruits, vegetables and beans also providefiber, which is connected to many health benefits, including living longer.

According to the supplemental material provided with the study, exercise included activities such as qigong and running.

The mental wellness of participants was determined by asking questions about anxiety and loneliness.

There is evidence that loneliness increases inflammation and decreases immunity.

For example,stress can mess with your gutand even decrease the number of beneficial bacteria residing there.

Fewer beneficial bacteria can increase inflammation.

And inflammation can be a culprit in many physical and mental conditions.

All this is to say that we must take a holistic approach to health.

You, too, might live to become a centenarian!