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5 simple reasons why Queen Elizabeth II lived such a long life
At the age of 96, Queen Elizabeth II is both Britain’s longest-serving monarch and one of the oldest monarchs in recorded history.
And while there has been plenty of speculation about the daily routine of Her Majesty, who passed away peacefully in Balmoral on Thursday local time, a recent book identified the main habits that helped her live such a long and healthy life.
British-culture researcher Bryan Kozlowski extensively studied the Queen’s life and revealed the secrets to her longevity, health and stamina in his 2020 book, Long Live the Queen: 23 Rules for Living from Britain’s Longest-Reigning Monarch.
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In an interview with the New York Post, he labelled the monarch as “the paradigm of health and wellness” and shared the five simple ways others can live a long life just like her.
Exercise
While most people would believe that you need to maintain a rigorous fitness regime to maintain longevity, the author explained that this wasn’t the case for the Queen.
Instead, she was a fan of “sensible exercise”, including horseback riding and walks with her famous corgis.
“Research says the types of exercise you keep up are the ones which give you pleasure,” Kozlowski said.
Diet
According to Kozlowski, the Queen preferred simple meals like many people of her generation who lived through World War II.
“For an extended period in Britain, it was almost borderline unpatriotic to be too much of what we call a foodie nowadays,” he said.
For afternoon tea, the monarch enjoyed drinking Darjeeling with sandwiches and scones.
“She will also take the smallest sliver of cake,” Kozlowski added. “As dietitians often advise, you should give yourself permission to have occasional treats.”
Darren McGrady, who worked as a royal chef for 15 years, recently revealed that the Queen ate jam pennies for afternoon tea ever since she was a little girl.
“Simple, just bread and jam with a little butter — usually strawberry jam,” he said on YouTube. “We’d make the jam at Balmoral Castle with the gorgeous Scottish strawberries from the gardens.”
Her Majesty was also known for her love of the simple tuna and mayonnaise sandwich, according to The Telegraph.
Beauty regime
One story featured in Kozlowski’s book was when an aristocrat met the Queen for the first time and told her husband Prince Philip, “I never realised what lovely skin she has”.
The author claims that the Queen’s skincare products were all from the moderately-priced British brand Cyclax, including their Milk of Roses moisturiser.
She also stayed out of the sun by choosing to vacation in Scotland rather than in a tropical location.
Lifelong education
Kozlowski also wrote in his book that the Queen remained curious about the world in her later years and would often spend hours each day looking through documents.
He claims that one of her favourite things to do when meeting prime ministers during briefing sessions at Buckingham Palace was to “one-up” them by bringing up policies or constitutional matters they were unaware of.
Mental health
One of the key factors to Queen Elizabeth II’s long life was said to be her ability to constantly evolve and adapt to life’s changes.
“She has this willingness to adapt, which banishes the insidious stress you get from resisting change,” Kozlowski said. “That contributes to longevity and a fulfilling existence for sure.”
He also said that the Queen’s “glass-half-full attitude” gave her mental strength and she practised what psychologists call “benefit-finding”.
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