Secrets To Staying Healthy And Living A Longer Life

You eat right. You work out. You see your doctor regularly. All keys to healthy living today. But will these habits help you live longer?

Dr. Charlyce Davis said it all starts with your daily routine.

"What you do from when you first get up in the morning, to what you put in your mouth, to how active you'll be for the rest of the day." Dr. Davis said.

Davis sees a variety of patients. She said the ones who are the most easy going seem to live the longest.

"They've had different careers, all kinds of things," Dr. Davis said. "So I think their willingness to change helps them to survive."

Agnes Miller, 102 , knows a thing or two about living longer. As the oldest resident at Teal Ridge Retirement Community, she said her doctor gives a lot of the credit to genetics.

"Said I could eat anything I wanted. Said I had good genes," Miller said." "And I don't take any vitamins."

"Genes is one part of it," Dr. Davis said. "But environmental and habits is another part of how long you life and your risk of developing disease."

But Miller has one vice.

"I like bacon," she said. "Don't you like bacon?"

If bacon, in moderation, makes her happy, clearly Miller is on the right track.

"As long as you're enjoying yourself," Dr. Davis said. "A smile on your face, laughing. That's a lot of where you get your health benefits."

Picking up a hobby, doing things you love can lower your stress and in turn, keep your body in check. After 53 years of marriage, that's something Bill and Barbara Cathey understand.

"I keep him healthy and he keeps me on my toes and healthy," Barbara Cathey said. "We don't let each other sit around."

So the secret may not be a secret at all.

"Being around people who make you happy," Bernelle DeMasters said. "A lot of love."

"I just had a good life, all the way around," Miller said.

Sounds like Agnes and her friends have the right idea.

A new study finds happy people have a 35-percent reduced risk of dying compared with those who reported feeling the least happy.

By the way, Agnes celebrates her 103rd birthday the end of the month.

Simple Things You Can Do To Help You Live Longer