Lifespan Vs. Health Span: What's the Difference?
Lifespan and health span are both vital subjects to consider when it comes to overall health and wellness. However, it is significant to know the differences in certain emphasis on what to research and develop from the science and medical community. Lifespan has also been a more familiar term than health span, which is quite a concern because it is as important and in fact more important in certain areas of research, science, and medicine. Here are some basics for you to get started with.
What is lifespan?
Life span is defined in the dictionaries as the average length of life of an organism or of a material object especially in a particular environment or under specified circumstances. There is no exact value on what the maximum life span is but rather a theoretical number from existing knowledge about an organism; it is often given as a rough estimate based on the longest-lived organism of its species known to date. It is called the average lifespan, a statistical concept that is derived by the analyzing mortality data for populations of each species.
How is this measured?
This measurement of life expectancy is based on the year of its birth, its current age and other demographic factors including gender. The current highest life span among all countries for the year is in Hong Kong, which is around 82 for males and 88 years of age for females.
What is health span?
Health span, on the other hand, is a duration of time when a person is healthy. It also means, to be more specific, to be in a state of being free from disease, varying in people’s definition of what being healthy truly is. The current healthy life expectancy at birth is 63.3 years and globally stated in 2016.
What are the factors that influence our health span?
According to research, health span is measured through various factors in our lifestyle such as:
- Smoking
- Physical activities
- BMI
- Food consumption
- Environment
These are the current existing factors, and researchers continue to seek all other possible indicators that influence the length of one’s health span.
The science of healthy aging
Advancements in technology and research made it possible for people to invest in healthy aging: to preserve the physical and mental health and achieve a good quality of life in the later years. Prevention over cure, as the famous saying goes.
In one way or another, lifespan and health span are closely linked to each other, and promote similar ways on how to prolong life a healthy way. It is broken down into molecular and non-molecular approaches such as:
- Maintaining a healthy balanced diet
- Moderate, regular exercise
- No smoking and alcohol (or limited alcohol consumption)
- Anti-aging therapies
- Health supplements
(source)
Most people are living longer, but not healthier according to recent statistics. This is why the medical community is starting to shift focus into health span as well, to be more familiarized and for people to put in more effort in keeping themselves free from disease rather than just focusing on the treatment of one. Our Healthspan is the most advanced epigenetics test in the world and is the perfect aid for you to keep track of your health! The secret of longevity is in the life that you carry on every single day. Protect it and look forward to a healthy future.
