Want to live longer? 5 proven budget-friendly longevity habits that science approves

Private $20,000 health clinics offering genome sequencing and full-body scans. Gyms with $40,000 annual fees. Blood plasma exchanges for $10,000 or more a pop. One-on-one sleep coaching and $300 wearables.

Pursuing "longevity" has become an expensive -- not to mention time-consuming -- hobby. But it doesn't have to be: Experts say many of the practices that are most likely to extend your life are also the cheapest.

Simple lifestyle choices, like eating well and getting regular exercise, are by far "the most effective and well-supported" longevity tactics -- and "nothing else comes close," said John Tower, a professor of biological sciences at the University of Southern California Leonard Davis School of Gerontology.


The influencer-backed supplement stacks, oxygen treatments and stem cell therapies for longevity are "experimental at best," added Joseph Coughlin, the director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab. If you're looking to live longer and healthier, you're better off doing "what science and history have confirmed."

Here are some of the experts' suggestions.

Work out. It doesn't matter where.
High-end gyms might have personal trainers and fancy biometric measurements to track your heart rate and blood oxygen levels. But it's the exercise itself that's proven to extend your health and lifespans, and you can get the same physical benefits by working out on your own, said Roger Fielding, a senior scientist at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University. Cardio exercise and strength training are both linked to lower mortality because they reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease. Just walking 30 minutes per day around your neighborhood can significantly reduce your risk; so can doing higher intensity workouts or resistance training using dumbbells at home, he said.

The American Heart Association recommends at least 150 minutes per week of moderate intensity aerobic exercise (like walking) or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise (like running or swimming) to prevent cardiovascular disease. But "any level of physical activity" is better than none, Fielding said.

A healthy diet beats supplements.
People try all sorts of eating strategies to extend their life span: Calorie restriction, fasting, ketogenic diets, and supplementing with vitamin or protein "bundles" or "stacks," to name a few. Some of those practices -- like calorie restriction and intermittent fasting -- have been shown to help mice live longer, but researchers still don't know if they have the same effect in humans. And most of the supplement stacks sold or touted by anti-aging influencers haven't been sufficiently studied for their safety or longevity claims, nor are they closely regulated.

You're better off eating unprocessed, whole foods, said Anne-Julie Tessier, a dietitian and assistant nutrition professor at the University of Montreal. Studies show that diets based on whole grains, fruits and vegetables, lean proteins and other unprocessed foods -- like the Mediterranean or DASH diet -- can reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease, and therefore extend lifespan.

Eating healthfully can be expensive, Tessier acknowledged. To reduce costs, she recommended swapping fresh fruits and vegetables and lean proteins for frozen ones, which can be "just as nutritious."

Aim for seven solid hours of sleep (no tracker required).
Research has shown that consistent, quality sleep is associated with a longer life. And while addressing poor sleep issues can be frustrating, there's "no strong evidence" that sleep trackers or pricey private sleep clinics, which sometimes include genomic tests and sleep scans, can help get you there without any other major lifestyle changes, said Dr. Brienne Miner, an assistant professor at Yale School of Medicine who specializes in aging and sleep. Sleep trackers can even induce sleep anxiety, an unhelpful obsession with improving sleep that can paradoxically make your sleep worse.

Studies suggest that around seven hours of mostly uninterrupted sleep each night seems to be the sweet spot for staving off health risks because that amount gives your body suitable time to regulate hormones and blood sugar levels and to allow your brain to flush out toxins. Sleeping significantly more or less than that is a risk factor for early mortality, Miner said.

To achieve a solid seven hours, having a consistent sleeping and waking schedule, exercising and socializing regularly and avoiding alcohol are key, she said.

If you need help sleeping better, some less expensive products and services may benefit you more than private sleep labs, said Girardin Jean-Louis, the director of the Center on Translational Sleep and Circadian Sciences at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He suggested things like sleep masks, white noise machines or cognitive behavioral therapy, specifically for insomnia.

Train your brain to be more optimistic.
Your mindset and the way you feel go a long way toward living longer: Scientists know depression and loneliness increase mortality risk. To improve mental health, some anti-aging enthusiasts consider things like ketamine therapy or psychedelic retreats.

Training your brain to be more positive is an effective and easier option. Emerging research suggests optimism can extend your lifespan -- and you can cultivate it yourself with daily writing exercises or talk therapy, said Laura Kubzansky, a professor of social and behavioral sciences at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, who co-authored the research.

If journaling or therapy isn't for you, surrounding yourself with friends and family can also promote longevity by boosting your mood and lowering stress, which in turn can reduce your risk of chronic diseases, said Judith Carroll, an associate professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at UCLA. But not all socializing is beneficial, especially when it's with people who make you feel judged or anxious. Social connection "needs to be nurturing and supporting," she said.

To check if it's working, see how you feel.
Some longevity influencers tout "biological age" tests, which, for around $100 or more, can estimate the health of your cells and how they're aging over time from a blood or saliva sample. There are numerous tests on the market today, but experts say they're imprecise measures that typically only reflect chemical modifications to your DNA, and that each test calculates biological age slightly differently.

At the moment, these tests aren't sophisticated enough to conclusively tell you your biological age, said William Mair, a professor of molecular metabolism at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. It's just as helpful to ask yourself whether the lifestyle changes you're making are leaving you feeling younger, healthier and sharper -- especially since your goal should be to live better, not simply longer, he said.

Like the other experts, Mair urged patience and prudence in the quest to live longer. "If it's available online right now, people don't wait. But my argument would be, they should," he said, adding: "Would I be spending lots of money" on unproven, under-researched products to delay aging instead of adopting healthier habits? "Probably not."

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.