Lifestyle behaviour in the Seguimiento Universidad De Navarra (SUN) Cohort linked to total mortality

Academics at the University of Navarra in Pamplona, Spain have recently published two studies relating to the Seguimiento Universidad De Navarra (SUN) Cohort.
The first study, led by Liz Ruiz-Estigarribia of the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health at the university’s School of Medicine, investigated the association between a multidimensional healthy lifestyle score and all-cause mortality risk.
20,094 participants in the SUN cohort were followed up from 1999 to 2018. A 10-point healthy lifestyle score previously associated with a lower risk of major cardiovascular events was applied, assigning 1 point to each of the behaviours. The 10 point assessment included some less-studied lifestyle-related factors: never smoking, moderate-to-high physical activity, moderate-to-high Mediterranean diet adherence, healthy BMI, moderate alcohol consumption, avoidance of binge drinking, low TV exposure, taking a short afternoon nap, spending time with friends, and working ≥40 hours per week.
During a median follow-up of 10.8 years, 407 deaths were documented. In the multivariable adjusted analysis, the highest category of adherence to the score (7-10 points) showed a 60% lower risk of all-cause mortality than the lowest category (0-3 points) (hazard ratio=0.40, 95% CI=0.27, 0.60, p<0.001 for trend). In analyses of the healthy lifestyle score as a continuous variable, for each additional point in the score, a 18% relatively lower risk of all-cause mortality was observed (adjusted hazard ratio=0.82, 95% CI=0.76, 0.88).
The study authors conclude that adherence to a healthy lifestyle score, including some less-studied lifestyle-related factors, was longitudinally associated with a substantially lower mortality rate in a Mediterranean cohort. They argue that comprehensive health promotion should be a public health priority.
Source: Liz Ruiz-Estigarribia, Miguel Á. Martínez-González, Jesús Díaz-Gutiérrez, Alfredo Gea, Anaïs Rico-Campà, Maira Bes-Rastrollo, Lifestyle-Related Factors and Total Mortality in a Mediterranean Prospective Cohort, American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2020.