Humour, a good marriage, random acts of kindness and a belief in God are part of the recipe for a long, happy life.
Add a healthy diet, mental and physical exercise and a “don’t-worry, be-happy attitude” and it gets even better.
This is the view of Professor Emeritus Henry Fraser, one of Barbados’ outstanding medical figures, who delivered a lecture at the Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU) complex in Harmony Hall, St Michael Wednesday to mark International Day of Older Persons.
“Marriage promotes longevity, especially in men,” Fraser said in a presentation with the subtitle Ageing With Grace, With A Grin And In Motion.
“So, men, marry if you want to live long, but make sure you marry for the right reasons and then living long is a big, big bonus. Of course, bad marriages can shorten life dramatically through suicide or homicide.”
Fraser pointed to a study published in 2006 in the American Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health which found that people who never marry “are far more likely to die prematurely than those who get hitched or even marry [and] then divorce”.
