Multisport Life

Increasing Your Lifespan with Dental Floss

 
Somewhere north of Vancouver. Where I had a lovely little picnic with Mother Nature.

First, allow me to get this out of the way: I love British Columbia.

I’m here on a business trip, although it’s hard for me to consider it business when I’m surrounded by such natural beauty and friendly people.  Although I have to admit it was strange to see that all of the men’s urinals in the Vancouver airport seem to be designed for midgets.

And now, for something completely different…

At dinner tonight, I had the pleasure of listening to a presentation by a cardiologist from the Cleveland Clinic, ranked by U.S. News & World Report as America’s #1 heart center for 13 straight years.  The good doctor discussed the difference between our chronological age (determined by our birth certificate) and our physiological age (determined by our physical characteristics). While we age at different rates, due to genetics and lifestyle (i.e., sitting on our fat ass vs. getting off our fat ass and exercising), we have the capacity to live to quite a ripe old age. Research has shown that cell doubling is a good indicator of lifespan. Based on that information, scientists believe that humans have the capacity to live to 130.

His point is that people are not really dying from old age. We are dying from disease. 

That disease comes from a mix of genetics (30 percent), our environment (5 percent), lack of medical access (10 percent) and some other minor factors. The biggest contributor (4o percent) is our lifestyle choices, with the big three being smoking, sitting on our asses, and obesity.  

He recommended that everyone go to RealAge.com and determine their physiological age. It takes about 10 minutes to fill out the survey. Chronologically, I’m 40.1 years old. Physiologically, I’m 31.4. 

According to the cardiologist, below are some things I can do, that I’m not currently doing, that would add years to my lifespan:

• Take a multivitamin. While I didn’t get a chance to scrabble down his specific recommendation, taking a good multivitamin will add 6 years to my life.
• Floss my teeth every day. I admit it. I’m lousy at remembering to do this and need to make it part of my brushing routine. If I do,  flossing will add 6.4 years to my life. I kid you not. Turns out that even a mild case of gingivitis  makes the blood platelets sticky, which increases coronary artery disease. Who would have known?
• Walk for 20 minutes, two times per week. I don’t count this because I’m a triathlete dude and it’s a given that I will exercise more than this in a typical week. I list it here because this minimal amount of exercise will add five years to your life.

While anyone reading this knows that exercise will improve your lifespan, and more important, your quality of life, who would have thought that the simple act of flossing your teeth would have an even greater impact than walking for 40 minutes a week? Flossing takes what…one minute per day? Doing that two times a day will give you two minutes a day, or 14 minutes per week.

The biggest lifespan bang for your buck is flossing.

I’ve read where Ironman champ Mark Allen claims that a low grade gum infection (like gingivitis) can screw up people’s heart rate. I was suspicious of that logic until the cardiologist brought it up tonight and explained why flossing your teeth is such a good idea. Not just for the teeth. But for the whole body.

Floss your teeth people!

Find your edge and dance upon it.

hak

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