DRINK UP FOR HEALTH

Study finds drinkers less likely to make an early exit

Cheers to life — seriously. When it comes to making it into your 90s, booze actually beats exercise, according to a long-term study. The study, begun in 2003 and led by University of California neurologist Claudia Kawas, tracked 1,700 people who were over 90 to explore the impacts of daily habits on longevity.

Investigators discovered that subjects who drank about two glasses of beer or wine a day were 18% less likely to experience a premature death than those who abstained from alcohol, the Independent reports.

Meanwhile, in contrast to couch potatoes, participants who exercised 15 to 45 minutes a day, cut the same risk by 11%.

“I have no explanation for it, but I do firmly believe that modest drinking improves longevity,” Kawas said at the recent American Association for the Advancement of Science annual conference in Austin, Texas.

Other factors found to boost longevity included weight. Participants who were slightly overweight — but not obese — cut their odds of an early death by 3%, compared to subjects who were normal or underweight.

“It’s not bad to be skinny when you’re young but it’s very bad to be skinny when you’re old,” Kawas noted in her address.

Subjects who kept busy with a hobby two hours a day were 21% less likely to die early, while those who drank two cups of coffee a day cut that risk by 10%, compared to noncoffee drinkers.

“These people are inspiring — they drink wine, drink coffee, gain weight, but they exercise and use their brains,” said Kawas, United Press International reported. “Maybe that can tell us something.”

Further study is needed to determine how habits impact longevity beyond people’s genetic makeup. In the meantime, have a beer or a glass of wine — or both.

Those who drink daily, but moderately, are less likely to die early, University of California researchers found. Coffee drinkers also were found to cut their risk of checking out.