Over 40 years ago, I saw a poster of an old weather-worn cowboy with a caption that said “If I’d have known I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of myself”!!! It is a reminder to think about what we can do now to prepare ourselves for old age. Proverbs 22:6 says “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.” I think that is telling us that we can learn good habits and learn to make good choices when we are young and they will help us as we grow older. That may be hard to do in this instant gratification world. Will my lab work that is not due for another 6 months influence whether I have a cheeseburger and fries today or is it too far in the future to worry about? Is anyone really responsible for their cholesterol or heart disease or their diabetes or can we just blame it all on genetics and not take any personal responsibility for our health?
In my 30+ years of experience in long term care, genetics does play a large part in people’s health AND taking care of yourself also plays a large part. If the genetics in your family is already not good, it is even MORE important to take care of yourself.
There are other things we can do to enjoy good health as we age. The New Scientist magazine at
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19025541.500-how-to-live-to-100-and-enjoy-it.html?full=true&print=true has some tips on “How to live to 100…and enjoy it.” Here’s a summary of the article.
Go for the burn: Many researchers believe that small doses of "stressors" such as poisons, radiation and heat can actually be good for you - so good that they can even reverse the ageing process. The big unanswered question is at what dose does an otherwise harmful agent become beneficial? Clearly, too much radiation or poison are bad for you. However, there may be a safe way to trick your body's repair mechanisms into overdrive. Smith-Sonneborn and others suspect that the life-extending effects of exercise are also down to hormesis. She proudly practices what she preaches with an exercise regime that she says stresses her body to just the right level to get the optimum response. "I'm 70 and I have the bone density of a 35-year-old," she says.
Don't be a loner: Being sociable looks like one of the best ways to add years to your life. Relationships with family, friends, neighbors, even pets, will all do the trick, but the biggest longevity boost seems to come from marriage or an equivalent significant-other relationship.
Consider relocation: A recent study of elderly residents from a poor area of St Louis, Missouri, found that factors such as low air quality and dirty streets tripled the likelihood of their suffering from disabilities in later life. Likewise, a survey by Scottish newspaper The Scotsman in January found that people living in the poorest suburbs of Glasgow had a life expectancy of just 54 - three decades shorter than people in wealthier areas. Tom Perls, who heads the New England Centenarian Study at Boston University, represents the other end of the spectrum. He believes that while longevity may seem to run in families, environment accounts for up to 70 per cent of this effect. "Just because it's familial doesn't mean it's all down to genes," he says, because family members often share many environmental factors. He points to a group of Seventh Day Adventists in California whose lifespan averages 88, a decade more than the US average. They are genetically quite diverse, but share a lifestyle that includes vegetarianism, no smoking, no drinking, and with strong emphasis on family and religion, all of which can contribute to longevity. There is general agreement, however, that your physical location is less important than the personal environment you create through your behavior. You could move to the Japanese island of Okinawa, the world's number one longevity hotspot, but a better bet might be to live life the Okinawa way. "We boil it all down to four factors: diet, exercise, psycho-spiritual and social," says Bradley Willcox, a researcher with the Okinawa Centenarian Study.
Make a virtue out of a vice: One of the most informative studies of healthy ageing to date has been conducted at the convent of the School Sisters of Notre Dame in Mankato, Minnesota. The nuns there, around 1 in 10 of whom have reached their hundredth birthday, teach us that a healthy old age is often a virtuous one - which means no drinking or smoking, eating healthily and in moderation, and living quietly, harmoniously and spiritually. But clean living is not to everyone's taste. Besides, what is the point of living to 100 if you can't enjoy a few wicked indulgences? Assuming you will have some vices, the trick is to choose them wisely. The idea that one glass of wine a day is actually good for you is now ingrained in the popular consciousness. Another vice that you probably shouldn't fight too hard is sleep. Unless you can reset your body clock with lots of bright light and good discipline, fighting your natural lark or owl tendencies can be bad for your health. Your best bet if you are a chocolate lover is dark chocolate. Whatever your pleasure, the great news is that pleasure itself is good for you. Really good. Not only does it counteract stress, it also causes our cells to release a natural antibiotic called enkelytin. Whether it's chocolate, coffee, having a tipple or a flutter, a spot of sunbathing (with suncream), a romantic (or more carnal) encounter, or another form of sinful pleasure, think of it as self-medication. Just make sure that if you have a vice, you enjoy it.
Exercise the little gray cells: Study after study has shown that intelligence, good education, literacy and high-status jobs all seem to protect people from the mental ravages of old age and provide some resistance to the symptoms, if not the brain shrinkage, of dementia. Brain researchers and doctors are starting to refer to it as brain or cognitive reserve. Mental gymnastics are definitely on the agenda - everything from reading to learning new things to interacting with people rather than being a couch potato. But don't stop with mental exercises. At least one study has shown that older mice produced new brain cells faster and learned quicker than sedentary creatures when they were put on an exercise program. All this helps explain the remarkable mental health of those centenarian nuns, who fill their advancing years with both physical and mental activity, from gardening and crosswords to reading, walking, conversation and knitting.
Smile!: Centenarians have surprisingly little in common, but one thing most do share is their love of a laugh. People born with a sunny disposition cope better with stress, which increases their chances of reaching a ripe old age. The study of nuns in Minnesota reveals that those who had the most positive outlook on life during adolescence and young adulthood are also the healthiest in old age. Some people are born laid-back, but even if you are a natural stress bunny, there are things you can do to reduce your cortisol levels. "These include t'ai chi, exercise, having faith, meditation and yoga," laughing and smiling also reduce cortisol levels. A happier life is likely to be a longer one - and that's surely something to smile about.
Nurture your inner hypochondriac: One obvious piece of advice for anyone wishing to become a healthy centenarian is this: if you're sick, go see a doctor.
Watch what you eat: Metabolilc stability is the key to ageing. Eat up to at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables daily. Eat foods high in antioxidants. There is strong evidence supporting the assertion that fresh fruit and vegetables, especially greens, keeps the brain sharp. A healthy diet is extremely important factor in longevity and eating high calorie, fat-laden foods is on e of the surest ways to an early grave.
Get a life: What you need is a bit of excitement along the way. Take some risks. Not only will new experiences bring you pleasure, you may also find they have added benefits. There is also plenty of evidence to indicate that the kind of buzz you get from traveling, learning a new language, completing a sudoku puzzle or creating your own artistic masterpiece helps delay the onset of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's. Admittedly, some of the most thrilling - think mountaineering, cave diving or base jumping - are not entirely compatible with longevity, but maybe you can justify the risk by making a trade-off. If you smoke, quit now. Or cut down on some other major life-shortening habit such as binge drinking, reckless driving or cheeseburgers. Alternatively, if you want a thrill but cannot justify the risk, go for safer kicks such as fairground rides, amateur dramatics, a new lover or bungee jumping.
