Booze or exercise? People who drink two or three glasses of beer or wine every day are more likely to live past the age of 90 than those who exercise daily, according to the results of a long-term study from the University of California.
Dr Claudia Kawas, a specialist in neurology at the University of California, spoke at the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual conference in Austin, Texas about research data she and her team have been gathering for the past 15 years.
Dr Kawas and her team began The 90+ Study in 2003 in order to determine factors associated with longevity. The researchers were interested in what types of food, activities and lifestyles are associated with those who live beyond the age of 90.
The researchers analysed 1,700 nonagenarians, examining how their daily habits affect their health, and the results of the long-term study proved that the conventional wisdom about alcohol – that it is bad for you – is misleading.
The researchers discovered that alcohol has many positive effects on human health. According to The 90+ Study website, the major takeaway from the results is the fact that “People who drink moderate amounts of alcohol or coffee live longer than those who abstain.”
Those who consumed approximately two glasses of beer or wine a day were nearly 20 percent less likely to experience a premature death or suffer Alzheimers disease late in life.
“I have no explanation for it, but I do firmly believe that modest drinking improves longevity,” Dr Kawas stated at the conference.
Furthermore, those who were slightly overweight in their 70s, though not obese, were recorded as having a lower chance of dying than those who were underweight.