Three healthy living tips

When it comes to staying healthy, most of us understand the basics by now — eat right, exercise, don’t smoke cigarettes and limit alcohol intake. If you’ve mastered these guidelines, here are three additional smart tips that may help improve your well-being:

1. Get more sleep. Keeping choosing to watch that extra episode or check your phone one last time rather than head to bed? A new study by the Journal of Sleep Research found that adults who consistently get six or seven hours’ shut-eye for seven days a week have a lower mortality rate than those who get five or fewer hours of sleep.

2. Brush better. About four in five people over the age of 35 are affected by gum disease, according to new research from the European Federation of Periodontology. Gum disease is caused by a build-up of plaque along the gum line. To better protect your teeth and gums, swap out your manual toothbrush for an electric one.

3. Eat less carbohydrates. A new study from Hamilton’s Mcmaster University found no association between eating more than the recommended amount of fat and developing heart disease or having a stroke. In contrast, people who ate a lot of carbohydrates (more than 60 per cent of their total calorie intake) were less healthy than those who didn’t. So, while moderation is key in any diet, pay less attention to lowfat or fat-free products and instead cut back on sugars and carbohydrates.