As we ring in the new year, a respected physician is sharing some tips for a happy and healthy 2026 with Nora O'Donnell. Starting with a suggestion you just might not expect. [music] >> I'll take a little dark chocolate and a little of [music] that pistachio.
>> Dr Ezekiel Emanuel is serving up some unusual advice as you start out 2026. >> Eat your ice cream. That doesn't sound like a New Year's resolution.
>> Ice cream will make you happy, and that's very important. >> Why would I live longer eating ice cream? >> Ice cream is a good dairy product.
It's got protein. It saturated fats are in a globule, so it doesn't affect you as much as saturated fats and meats and other things. Plus, you typically do it socially with someone else.
Um, and you know, being happy is a very important part of living a long time. >> I feel like you're saying eat your ice cream is like don't stress out as much about life. be more social.
>> We're here for only 75, 85, 90 years. You've got to make life enjoyable. You've got to make it fulfilling.
>> The prominent oncologist and health policy expert is taking a different approach in his new wellness book called Eat Your Ice Cream: Six Simple Rules for a Long and Healthy Life. >> I want people to stop obsessing. Make it part of your life.
You should like exercising. You should like eating well. Otherwise, you're not going to do it for years and years and decades, which is what's necessary for a long healthy life.
>> The doctor's health handbook does include the basics of what to eat, how to exercise, and the allimportant reminder that sleep is fundamental to wellness, but it goes beyond that. This book is broken into six behaviors, starting with don't be a schmuck. [laughter] not something I would think of the first chapter for a wellness or longevity book.
>> One of the things that is I think core to the book is stop doing things uh that aren't good for your health. And so don't be a schmuck is >> or don't be an idiot. >> Don't make mistakes.
>> Right. Don't be a schmuck is my father's reference to us when we were being stupid. And so there are lots of things that we do as human beings that can be schmuckucky.
>> So list some of those things. Well, smoking, vaping, doing drugs, uh not taking your vaccines. Uh I don't agree with the current administration and they're dead wrong on this.
>> Also on the so-called schmuck list, alcohol. This is what everybody wants to know about the right amount of alcohol or no alcohol. >> There has been a lot of research on alcohol.
Uh so here's the way I distill it. Um the safest level is probably zero. There are some studies and we should be clear where it's half a cup a day, three cups uh a week.
>> Nobody drinks a half a glass of wine. I'm sorry. >> So you drink every other day.
On the other hand, 60 65% of the public drinks. You're not going from 65% to zero. So you have to give people reasonable advice.
And the reasonable advice is first of all, no binge drinking. That's really bad for you. Don't drink alone.
That's really bad for you. If you're using alcohol as a lubricant for social interaction, which many people do, that's probably good. You're getting some benefit from the social interaction.
>> Social interactions, a consistent theme for Dr Emanuel is something he learned at a young age. >> One of the fascinating things about you is you're a cancer doctor and a professor. Your brother Ari is a super agent in Hollywood.
Your other brother, Rahm, former mayor of Chicago, ambassador, may be running for president of the United States. What is it that your parents taught all of you that has led you I mean, you're all incredibly successful. >> Um, now you're going to make me cry because every time I talk about my parents that are growing up, I I tend to cry.
They taught us how to be social and interact with people. They also taught us how to be responsible. One of the things my mom did in raising us is, you know, get out of the house and go occupy yourself.
Rah and I went to school. I was six in first grade and he was in nursery school. I had to take him from school, walk two blocks across a busy street, get on a bus, pay the carfare, get off at the right spot.
I learned a huge amount of responsibility. >> Taking care for your young brother, >> taking care of my brothers. The other thing I think they did which um it was super important for us is we all slept in the same bedroom.
We were a unit. We yes we fought endlessly and you know I like to joke with people we didn't go to bed until there was blood you know because of all the fights but we were also each other's best friends. >> His takeaway relationships matter.
Dr Emanuel lists lifestyle choices he considers anti-wellness like chronic stress, a fast food diet, social media, and dining alone. So, I think people would agree with all of those with the exception of dining alone. Like, a lot of people go to a restaurant or get home from work and dine alone.
>> If it's an occasional thing, don't make it every day. And, you know, if you find yourself dining alone, what you should do is call up a friend. If you're sitting at a bar, right, and you're dining there, ask the person next to you, you know, have you been to this restaurant before?
You know, what do you do? Why are you here? You know, strike up a conversation.
We underplay those casual conversations and how important they are for us. >> One of the interesting things you talk about in this book and may surprise people is what you say about retirement. [laughter] >> Yes.
Retirement leads to more rapid cognitive decline for people. I say to people, don't retire. And if you're going to retire, you have to plan retirement well so that you stay engaged, you stay mentally sharp, and that doesn't mean, well, you know, I'm going to try to play the saxophone one day.
>> But Dr Mino, a lot of retired people like to buy books and watch Sunday morning. [laughter] Well, if they're buying books and staying mentally engaged that way, if they're going to volunteer um stay or they're talking to friends or they're taking up a new hobby seriously, all of that is excellent. Highly endorsed, >> meaning don't retire the mind or retire your social engagement.
>> Yes. And it's very important. You've got to be deliberate about it.
You can't let nature take its course. >> So, what's the biggest piece of advice you have for someone in 2026? >> Build your social relationships.
It's definitely the most important thing for longlasting uh health and happiness.
