Living In Las Vegas: How To Live The Vegas Life And Still Look Young

Author DJ THUMP

April 29th, 2024 1:28 PM

Friends, pool party and cheers on summer vacation with happy people drinking and laughing with feet in water. The Vegas life is definitely fun, but all that fun can take its toll.

The world knows that Las Vegas is where everyone comes to party, eat, drink, and well… you know the saying, “What happens in Vegas…Stays in Vegas.” Or shall we say “What Happens In Las Vegas Can Make You Look Older!?”

With all of the hype, lights, and late nights, whether you are living in Las Vegas or just visiting, the party lifestyle can take its toll.

Things People Living In Las Vegas Do That Makes Them Look Older

The older we get, the harder it is to recover from living in Las Vegas, especially if we frequently indulge in this valley’s lifestyle. Here are a few things that people do in Las Vegas that can make you look older over time.

Too Much Sun

Anyone living in Las Vegas knows that this desert sun can be brutal to your skin. According to The National Library of Medicine, “areas of the body that are frequently exposed to the sun such as the face, neck, forearms, or back of the hands acquire visible signs of aging more rapidly than other areas of the body”.

A Las Vegas local, or even a tourist, spending too much time in the sun can definitely damage their skin. So stock up on that sunscreen, especially as we get closer to summer.

Smoking

One thing that some people living in Las Vegas do that ages them is smoking. Even those who aren’t habitual smokers occasionally have the habit of lighting one up when enjoying a drink. This can definitely add age onto your life. According to ash.uk.org, smoking increases the risk of prematuring aging in the face, including premature wrinkling. And the more you smoke, the greater the risk.

Bad Eating Habits

Although there are plenty of restaurants in Las Vegas that offer great deals and buffets, we tend to eat poor meals, too much fatty foods, too much grease and too much overprocessed food. This is speeding up the process of our cells aging, according to harvardpilgrim.org. Things that don’t digest well will also definitely put pounds on and add extra time to your life clock.

Not Exercising

A lot of people think that you have to go to a gym to get exercise, but exercise comes in many different forms. While doing your everyday routine. Going to the store going shopping. Sometimes it’s just as simple as parking further away from the door to get those extra steps in. All of which can help with that aging heart.

Too Much Alcohol

Vegas is a place where you can party all night long. And what goes with partying? Alcohol! The more alcohol you drink, the more your body tends to shut down. It’s hard on your liver. As well as on your age clock. Northwestern Medicine actually reported that “consuming certain types of alcohol over long periods of time as well as binge drinking both speed up biological aging.”

Not Enough Sleep

Vegas is a town that never sleeps. The average person should get at least seven hours of sleep per night. And as we get older, it’s even more essential to get those hours in. In fact, sleepeducation.org reported that “a single night of insufficient sleep can make an older adults’ cells age quicker.”

Just because we are living in Las Vegas (or visiting for the weekend), doesn’t mean we have to look like we’ve had too much of the party life. A few lifestyle tweaks can keep us having all the fun without paying too much for it.

Marlon "DJ Thump" Rice is a morning show host on Jammin’ 105.7 "Thump In The Morning!" He has been with the station for the past six years and has been inducted into the Nevada Broadcasters Hall of Fame class of 2019. DJ Thump has toured with R&B legend Al B. Sure! As his music director. As a content creator for Jammin’ 105.7, DJ Thump writes articles on sports, preferably the Las Vegas Raiders and the world champion Las Vegas Aces. DJ Thump writes about the local community (which he is heavily involved in) as well as local Black-owned businesses.

Signs You'll Live a Long Life

There are some special signs you’ll live a long life and even possibly make it to 100. When you’re in your teens, you might feel like you’re going to live forever. But, as the years ago by, you’re probably getting more aware of your fallibility and the inevitability that one day, you’ll no longer be on this Earth. Not to sound depressing, but the good news is that there are these signs you’ll live a long life and things you can do to increase your chances of doing so.

The Average Lifespan of Americans

Before we get to some signs you’ll live a long life, let’s talk about the average lifespan of Americans today. According to the experts at Healthsystemtracker.org, “In 1980, life expectancy at birth in the U.S. and in comparably large and wealthy countries was similar, but over recent decades, life expectancy improved by much more in peer nations than it has in the U.S. The COVID-19 pandemic increased mortality and premature death rates in the U.S. by more than it did in most peer countries, widening a gap that already existed before the pandemic.” So, the lifespan of Americans is trending in the wrong direction. In fact, according to their numbers, life expectancy in the U.S. went down by 1.3 years from 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic to 2022. But, in “peer countries,” life expectancies dropped by an average of 0.5 years in that same time window. Life expectancy in the U.S. went up by 1.1 years from 2021 to 2022, following the pandemic, but it’s still “well below pre-pandemic levels and continues to lag behind life expectancy in comparable countries, on average,” they note.

According to the CDC, the life expectancy for both sexes at birth is 76.4 years. For males, it’s 73.5 years, and for females, it’s 79.3 years. The CDC also notes that, “The infant mortality rate was 543.6 infant deaths per 100,000 live births in 2021. The change in infant mortality from 2020 was not statistically significant.” They add that, “Nine of the 10 leading causes of death in 2021 remained the same as in 2020. Heart disease, cancer, and COVID-19 remained the top 3 leading causes.” If you’re wondering about infant mortality, the leading causes of infant death in 2021 according to the experts at the CDC were “congenital malformations, low birth weight, sudden infant death syndrome, unintentional injuries, maternal complications, cord and placental complications, bacterial sepsis of newborn, respiratory distress of newborn, diseases of the circulatory system, and intrauterine hypoxia and birth asphyxia).” But, enough about death. Let’s get into some things to look out for that are signs you’ll live a long life. Hopefully you’ll make it to 100 or older.

Signs You’ll Live a Long Life

1. You Eat These Healthy Things
According to a University of Michigan study (via TheHealthy.com), “Women who consumed the most veggies and fruit had a 46 percent lower chance of dying over a five-year period compared with those who ate them infrequently. The study involved 700 participants in their 70s.

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2. You Workout (Specifically, Run 40 Minutes a Day)
According to NBCNews.com, “Scientists in California found that middle-aged people” who ran “for a total of about 5 hours per week lived longer and functioned better physically and cognitively as they got older.” They state that the “researchers tracked runners and nonrunners for 21 years.” Aside from running, CNBC.com states that, “Strength training twice a week and aerobic exercise three times a week, even if for just 10 minutes a day” also helps.

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3. For Women, You Had a Baby After Age 44
For women, if you were pregnant and had a baby naturally after age 44, “you’re about 15 percent less likely to die during any year after age 50 than your friends who had their babies before age 40, reports a recent University of Utah study,” via NBCNews.com. Lead researcher Ken R. Smith, PhD, professor of human development at the university, tells NBCNews.com, “If your ovaries are healthy and you are capable of having children at that age, that’s a marker that you have genes operating that will help you live longer.”

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4. You Socialize
The National Library of Medicine states that people with bigger social networks and who socialize tend to live longer. In the study, Dr. Freeman states, “People who have more social support tend to have enhanced mental health, cardiovascular health, immunological functioning, cognitive performance, resilience, life satisfaction, stress response and more.”

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5. You're Slim in the Waist
TheHealthy.com states that, “Women with a waist of 37 inches or more had a life expectancy that was five years lower after age 40 than did women with a waist of 27 inches or less, found one study. For men, a waist of 43 inches or more was linked to a three-year decrease in life expectancy compared with those with a waist of 35 inches or less.”

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6. You Drink Tea Each Day
Apparently, drinking one or two cups of tea a day is good for your health. “Both green and black tea contain catechins, which relax blood vessels. However, you should be making the tea yourself; in ready-to-drink teas, most of the catechins have probably dissolved already, so they don’t have quite the same heart-healthy power,” says TheHealth.com.

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7. You're Careful with Your Calories
“Researchers in St. Louis reported that men and women who limited their daily calories to 1,400 to 2,000 (about 25 percent fewer calories than those who followed a typical 2,000-to 3,000-calorie Western diet) were literally young at heart — their hearts functioned like those of people 15 years younger,” says NBCNews.com. So, make every calorie count, and keep calories low.

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8. You Get Your Sleep
Getting a good night’s sleep is important to overall health. According to CNBC.com, getting good sleep is one of the factors to make it to age 90. So, turn off Netflix and get some shut eye.

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9. You Have a Purpose in Life
Do you wake up each day with a purpose? Do you feel needed in this world? According to a 2014 study in the journal of Psychological Science, having a sense of purpose means you’ll have a longer life. In the study, they report that people in the study who passed away, about 10% of the participants, had reported lower scores for purpose in life.

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Bonus - Take This Longevity Test
The experts at Media.nmfn.com actually have a lifespan test that you can take online. I took it, and I won’t divulge the age is says I’ll make it to, but I was happy and pleasantly surprised by the result. It asks you some basic health and family questions. Take the test here, and hopefully you’ll be happy with the result.

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