You don’t get to 94 eating nothing but crumpets all day.
The United Kingdom’s beloved monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, is currently 94 years old. That’s pretty up there, beating out the average life expectancy for women in the United Kingdom by at least ten years. Now, I’ve always harbored a theory that the Queen somehow draws energy from her corgis, and that’s what keeps her going. As it turns out, though, a major contributing factor to her longevity is her diet, which is a lot less stupid, now that I think about it. If you’d like to live to see the next century, try to eat a little more like Queen Liz.
First, portions. Rather than three full meals, the Queen eats four light meals over the course of the day. This is a great way to maintain your waistline, and by extension your general health; smaller portion sizes have been estimated to cut general food intake by 25% by University of Cambridge scientists. But just because you should only eat to be fed doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy your food. You can’t help what you crave, after all, and the Queen doesn’t try to fight it; she frequently indulges in a small slice of chocolate cake (only chocolate, though, she doesn’t care for other flavors). As long as you don’t go overboard, a little treat is perfectly fine. Speaking of chocolate, actually, one additional caveat is to try to keep your chocolate as dark as possible, since dark chocolate has heart-healthy flavonoids in it. Milk and white chocolate may as well not exist to the Queen.
As for staple foods, the Queen’s favorites are fish and seasonal produce. A smoked salmon sandwich with afternoon tea and grilled fish for dinner is a common sight in Buckingham Palace, which contributes to the Queen’s good heart health. For fruits and veggies, if they’re not in season, she’s not having ’em. That may seem silly, but remember that in-season produce is often fresher and more nutritious, as opposed to out-of-season stuff that may spend a while in a freight truck.
Lastly, and this is pretty much mandatory for British folk, have some tea. The Queen can’t go a day without a cup of her favorite Earl Grey tea. Black teas can help to lower blood pressure and reduce cancer risk, as well as manage your cholesterol.
