To avoid cancer, heart disease and obesity, you should follow the four golden rules, an American study has identified.

The study was carried out by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

The study found that those who followed the four golden rules were 80% less likely to develop chronic diseases.

The ‘golden rules’ are:

• Take regular exercise
• Stay slim
• Eat a healthy diet, and
• Don’t smoke

The study used some outmoded criteria to determine whether the rules were followed – for example, BMI (body mass index) was used, whereas percentage body fat is a much better measure.