To what degree does genetics dictate lifespan as compared to health awareness?

[Della]

All four grandparents and both parents died of strokes, so I'm expecting that to be my destiny, but their ages at stroke time varied from 72 to 100.

One brother and I smoked like chimneys for about 25 years and are still going. The brother who never smoked, played tennis every single day, and ate the best quality food in San Francisco, died of cancer a few years ago-- the first cancer death our family has had.

He died of HPV related throat cancer. Meaning some girl or woman he dated during his 60 years of dating, passed the virus to him where it lay dormant until it started the cancer.

My husband has eleven brothers and sisters and only one has died. The one who used to sneer at me for smoking and brag that she had "no dirty habits."

My mother is the relative who had her stroke at 72 compared to her sister who lived to 100. She never smoked or took a drink of alcohol, exercised every day, ate a low fat diet before it was a thing and maintained a weight of about 120 pounds. She went to the hairdresser and the edge of the shampoo sink broke of a piece of plaque in her neck which caused a fatal aneurism.

I think I'll have donuts for breakfast.

 

[Paco Dennis]

All you can do is live healthy and safe. Everything else is out of your control.

 

[feywon]

There’s a lot of longevity on both sides of my family. I think the wild card is getting cancer. I have lost 8 friends and 6 were to cancer and no one made it out of their 60’s. Everyone took good care of themselves and had no bad habits.

Ah but health awareness plays into cancer--and i don't mean just not smoking and avoiding other carcinogen, stress is a huge factor in cancer and in severity of other health issues. Tho here's the thing most people don't think about--most of the animal studies to determine what was carcinogenic were done under conditions that were VERY stressful to the test animals. The two times i had 'precancerous' cells (once in cervix once a 'calcification' in breast) i was going thru very stressful times with soon to be exes.

 

[feywon]

i agree, @Sawfish, it's not an either or but a mix of factors. That said--i don't think a family history is our destiny for good or ill. Both my grandmothers lived to 98 but they were in very different states of being If i can retain the lucidity my paternal Irish Granny did i can deal with some aches and pains along the way to 98. But if i can't communicate with family, friends or do anything for myself...let me go.

My Mom died of a stroke at not quite 60, but she'd been hypertensive for years and when she'd been diagnosed with hyperglycemia in her 40s it took her almost 2 yrs (and several trips to ER in 'sugar shock' to work on changing her diet. i had low Blood Pressure till post menopausal weight gain when it went up to 'normal' range and i watch my glucose numbers. Moderation in most everything. i indulge my cravings---but in small amounts except at Christmas time.