A research study in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), in 1993, found that 80% of premature deaths resulted from poor diet, lack of physical activity, and smoking. When this research was repeated and reported in JAMA in 2003 the results were similar.
What does this tell us? People in poor health do poorly when facing a health challenge. Being in good health is an acute defense against both chronic disease and the challenge of a current disease. We know that being obese created the number one threat to the severity of COVID, especially for middle-age and younger adults. Healthier people, in most cases, had less serious cases of the virus. Some experts believe that if lifestyle problems had been addressed, 60% of COVID deaths may have been avoided. If you are aiming for a long and healthy life – move, have a positive outlook, eat a plant-based diet, and eat more real foods and fewer processed foods.
