It’s becoming more and more common for people to live to 100 or longer. In fact, researchers say that more than a third of all babies now born in wealthy nations are likely to reach their 100^th birthdays, thanks to advanced medical technology and treatment. Here are some of the best strategies for becoming a centenarian.

Eat vegetables and nuts. A study found that those who ate mainly vegetables gained an extra year and a half over meat-eaters; those who ate nuts regularly lived two years longer.

Make friends. Another study found that people with strong social networks were 50 percent less likely to die over a certain period. If you don’t have many friends or relatives in your local community, you can join in the voluntary activities or take part in a hobby group. You will stay happy and healthy through building the connections.

Don’t smoke. This is important: With occasional exceptions, smokers die younger than non-smokers. Even if you have had the habit for decades, quitting will help with your health greatly. It’s important to get your loved ones to stop it, too. People who breathed in secondhand smoke were 26 percent more likely to get heart disease than those who rarely stayed with smokers.

Improve your lifestyle. Along with healthy eating, you should focus on stress management, regular exercise, and building healthy relationships. When you eat more healthily, manage stress, exercise and love more, your brain actually gets more blood flow and more oxygen.

Have a sense of purpose. A study found that the common feature in communities with many people who are 100 or older was that older people still took part in daily life, through tasks such as cooking, cleaning and gardening. They feel the motivation(动机) to stay active, to get out of bed in the morning and live for a purpose.

For the last couple of weeks, I had been stuck in front of my computer working on a project that was very important to me. My every waking hour was consumed by the project and although I imagined that I would feel happy after completing parts of the project, I was confused to find that instead, I was feeling rather depressed.   I tried a range of methods to help cheer myself up.   I had a relaxing bath, cooked a delicious meal to enjoy with my family and even watched a light­hearted movie, but to_no_avail. It was only when I turned to meditation (沉思) for a solution that the answer came to me: turn to nature!

The very next day, I grabbed my camera and a bottle of water and set off to spend a few hours walking in a nature reserve, even though it was pouring with rain. Within a couple of minutes I felt alive again. To be honest, I felt like a young school girl again and had to stop myself from hopping along the path singing I’m singing in the rain, a song I used to sing when I was a child. I think as adults we often try too hard to control our inner children and as a result we restrain our own spirits, which only leads to depression and stress.

Interestingly, it has been shown that people who spend 40 minutes walking in a nature reserve have a drop in their blood pressure levels, but this does not happen when they spend a similar amount of time walking in a busy city centre.

If you feel a little low in spirits and know that you have spent too much time indoors, relax completely, remove your shoes and let your inner child come out and play.

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