Occupational benefits for longevity

We talk about occupational hazards – the negative impacts of a given profession. We normally don’t talk much about occupational benefits. Ok, maybe we do talk about the fame and money that comes along. But we never talk about any benefits that a profession brings in terms of health, more specifically longevity. I came across this nice youtube shorts that talks about a career that, if done right, has the fundamental benefits of longevity – Being a politician.

Never had I thought about the anti-ageing benefits associated with politics. Often used in a negative context, politics has a different side to it too, as this video really brought out. The guest here talks about 4 aspects of life that are fundamental to slowing down the ageing process in humans, and this is exactly how people live in a blue zone, where life expectancy is above 100 years with most years spent in great spirit and health. Longer health span with not much dependence on others for day-to-day activities, now that’s a life well lived.

Politicians, perhaps unknowingly, follow these fundamental four factors of human vitality. I used to think politics is a stressful profession, but then if it’s a job well done, gives some insane benefits of longevity. This of course, applies to serious politicians, ones who have skin in the game, and are in it to win it, not the ones who are just forced/coerced into it.

1. Physically active: Politicians are always on the move, doing rallies and meetings, one place after another. Movement is life.
2. Mentally Stimulated: Politicians need to keep up with their game, continuously thinking how to keep power, or if in the opposition, how to win power. Win this constituency, plan that election. Mind is always stimulated.
3. Insanely high sense of purpose: Politicians wake up every day with a purpose to win, to defeat their rivals, ward off any threat to their political existence. A strong purpose of life.
4. Surrounded by people: Politicians are always part of communities. They are always amongst people, meeting and holding rallies with lots of people, working with bureaucrats to form decisions, part of parliament to discuss policies, just to name a few. Humans are social creatures, after all.

Although there are other important aspects like sleep, diet quality, managing stress, etc. that impacts the general health, the above four factors form the basic building blocks of the anti-ageing process and are instrumental in making most politicians live longer and healthy. This was indeed a fresh thought, and I wondered if any other professions have these 4 occupational benefits.

Teachers? They are physically active, walking or running from one class to another, standing for lectures, always on the move. Mentally stimulated, as long as they manage to spur on the curiosity of their students. I have met several passionate teachers to whom teaching is their true calling and purpose. Teachers are always surrounded by kids of different ages, all younger to them (even better!).

Athletes are by definition physically active. Strategy is mostly part of the games they play, especially the coaches and captains, keeping their minds engaged. Team sports like football, cricket, hockey have more people element than the individual sports of track and field (with the exception of relay events, of course). Most of them are in it because they are good at it, and when it becomes their passion, their sense of life purpose, they become unbeatable. Most of the times, these folks are surrounded by people, in championships, sports events and even press conferences.

I could also think of secret service and military generals who have all the above factors in play in their profession. But then, there are high chances that they might not live longer, as the occupational hazard (getting killed in the field is real) is even greater than the benefits it poses.

Doctors? Some do have a great sense of purpose, and they are also always on the move, from their clinic, hospitals, wards, to operation theaters. They might also be mentally stimulated based on challenges that come up while handling unique cases (as they say medical system has understood maybe less than 5% of the human body). Doctors are always surrounded by people. All this seems to work alright until we realize the high stress they go through and irregular eating and sleeping schedule, thus negating the benefits accrued.

How can I not talk about IT, the software developers? Although we are mentally stimulated (well most of the time, let’s say), the desk job, by definition, is not physically active. Some do have a strong sense of purpose, some not much, and some just lost it along the way. Being part of a team brings the social aspect to this profession, but the sense of camaraderie really depends on the culture of the team and how it brings out a sense of belonging.

Farmers and other professions requiring labor are physically very active, but they normally lack the mental stimulation. At work, normally they are not surrounded by people, and much like other professions, the sense of purpose can waver between individuals. Police, lawyers, business folks, in fact for people of all professions, it finally boils down to using their physical and mental agencies. Being the right people in their right profession (their calling).

Hospitality industry is quite interesting. On the site, some are front desk/customer facing who are expected to be available at a fixed location, while the service folks are always on the move. Normally this bunch is always surrounded by people, although sometimes the complaining/annoying lots. Sense of purpose has to be strong, else it’s a great suffering. Mental faculties get deployed for interesting problems and situations. The non-customer facing offsite folks though belong to the desk job category.

I had read somewhere long time back that bus conductors tend to live healthy and longer than the drivers on the same bus and route. Conductors are normally expected to engage with passengers, handle interesting situations, and more importantly keep moving to issue tickets, look out for free riders, walk up and down the bus stairs. The bus drivers are rooted to their seats, driving mostly in traffic laden conditions where the brain normally runs on auto-pilot mode. In smaller towns and villages, the drivers do get their own share of gossips and conversations, but they don’t have as much freedom of movement as the conductors. In the cities, it gets even worse for the drivers. More so for the cab drivers. So, next time you see drivers looking more aged than what they claim, understand it’s one of their occupational hazards.

Profession or the industry per se, is normally chosen based on their calling, or the opportunity at hand. If the sense of purpose is very strong, other attributes could be overlooked and fulfilled in personal space. If the sense of purpose for the particular role is not strong, maybe there are other roles in the same industry. I remember watching an advertisement, maybe 30 years ago, where Nayan Mongia, the Indian cricket team wicketkeeper tries his hand (literally) on bowling and he hits the stumps, and the tagline reads “You never know what you can become“.

We can’t expect all jobs to have good mix of both physical movement and mental engagement. The major thought that should go, in my opinion then, is to analyze one’s profession and see what longevity traits are missing. Once that is clear, it’s easier to make the right adjustments. People whose profession demands physical labor, but not much mental challenges should look at how to stimulate their mind, good options include reading books (preferably some new topic), solve puzzles, attend quizzes, join debates, etc.

People having desk jobs, with all their mental faculties under good training, should look into how to become physically more active, perhaps go for runs, walks, hikes, preferably in social groups (made from office folks or residence communities). Making these 4 habits part of our daily life, somehow fitting in the missing jigsaw from the longevity puzzle, and slowing down ageing, this is the game we should all play. Enjoy your work-life balance and stay young forever!

I have surely missed out on lots of other professions. Please do share your thoughts if you think there are other interesting professions where these 4 longevity factors are at play. Thanks for your time!