Dear Reader,

I want to live for as long as I can. Having cancer twice really put that goal into sharp focus for me. But it's also not enough for me to just simply live longer. I want to live longer in good health, so that I can enjoy a long life with my wife and children. I want to be able to enjoy retirement one day. I want to enjoy playing with grandchildren in the future. I want to be free to travel and do many things.

June is National Cancer Survivor Month and June 4 is National Cancer Survivors Day. Both events recognize and celebrate the millions of adults and children in the United States who have experienced a cancer diagnosis. Cancer follows heart disease as the second leading cause of death in older adults.

Essentially, the risk factors for cancer are the same as the risk factors for heart attack, stroke, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and erectile dysfunction. The reason I wrote Live Younger Longer is that it doesn't have to be this way. We can all make small changes over time to reduce our chances of chronic illness or dying prematurely.

But is living longer enough? Most of us also want to live well – to enjoy good health, vitality and happiness all the way into our later years. The good news is that you have many opportunities to stop and even reverse the progression of disease. Live Younger Longer is your guide to these opportunities.