Healthy Lifestyles in U.S. Plunge — Wellness Wire

Only 8 percent of U.S. adults aged 40-77, implement what is considered by the medical profession to be a healthy lifestyle. What makes up an official healthy lifestyle? There are five healthy habits that need to be reviewed to determine if a person is living this lifestyle: a healthy body mass index, exercise three times a week, eating five portions of fruits and vegetables a day, not smoking, and light drinking. Results from a review of two large scale, 18 year studies, show that those who implement all five healthy habits dropped from 15 percent 19 years ago,  to 8 percent of the population in 2006. A body mass index greater than 30 rose from 28 percent to 36 percent, exercising three times a week dropped from 53 percent to 43 percent, smoking stayed the same, moderate alcohol intake slightly increased, and eating five portions of fruits and vegetables a day dropped by a whopping 40 percent.