Those of us over age fifty have a picture in our minds eye of what “old” people looked like in our youth. Forty or fifty years ago they appeared to move more slowly than WE do today. No one ever did any physical training or sports of any kind to the best of our recollection. There was no terminology to describe aging like there is today such as life extension and anti aging; there were no anti aging products to speak of – certainly not like today. In the nineteen sixties and seventies, old was age fifty – or where most baby boomers are passing or have passed through already!
When a person celebrates their fiftieth birthday these days, they can hardly believe they have reached the age their parents were when they appeared so old to us in our youth. At age fifty today, we are no longer considered old. Many of us today are doing something to control the aging process be it some exercise regimen or improved eating habits. Some take it further and have some “work done” like peels, laser treatments or even going under the knife for lifts and tucks or some other surgery.
Today for many boomers our objective is to reach our senior years in the best possible shape we can be in. We have a natural desire to enter old age looking and feeling as young as we can. Many people are youthful in their eighties and there are even some kids living into their nineties! People have understood for a number of years now that they can increase their longevity by being more active than they were thirty or forty years ago. Many of today’s seniors are living proof that it is never too late to start changing your health routines.
Today, the majority of baby boomers cringe when someone refers to them as getting old, they just cannot fathom getting older. Life spans are improving year after year so their “cringe factor” seems to be a reasonable reaction to getting old. Just the terminologies baby boomers and anti aging health products are embedded parts of today’s culture. Boomers are changing the paradigm of aging and this will be a good thing for humankind for centuries to come.
What will be critical for today’s middle aged individual will be to maintain or elevate their level of strength as they get older to ensure a better quality of life in their twilight years. All the anti aging products and cosmetic surgery available will not make a lick of difference in twenty or thirty years if you cannot move about. You’ll look great rolling around in your wheelchair in the nursing home but there is potential for a much more vigorous life in your golden years.
What follows are some practical ideas you can ponder so as you continue to advance in age, at the least it will be a slower process. Following through on these anti aging pointers will help you feel better as you age if you make a point of engaging in them and making them a habit. This will happen if you take them seriously for a month, at which point they become more routine. Staying consistent with these anti aging tips will positively impact your life. Try them for yourself and find out!
• Probably the most important pointer of all is to quit smoking whatever it is you are smoking. I should not have to go through a whole host of reasons why you should quit the weed but suffice to say your breath will smell better and your food will be tastier. Never mind the fact you will live longer!
• Watch your weight. Keeping your weight in check is vital to your overall health and fitness. Aim for a lean body which you can achieve by eating properly combined with some physical training. Fat cells cause havoc to your system including contributing in a big way to arteriosclerosis and an increased risk of developing diabetes mellitus [or type 2 diabetes].
• Start taking health supplement regularly. These are something that are a great advantage that our own elderly family members really did not have widely available to them as they aged. Pay specific heed to consuming alpha-Lipoic acid combined with acetyl-L-carnitine. These two supplements will greatly improve your energy level.
• Do not be afraid to cut back on your meals or even pass over a meal or two each week. Some people find it beneficial to skip a meal each day. The digestive process tends to be hard on the tissue due to excessive blood glucose, inflammation and free radical damage. Be sure to consume plenty of water as a substitute to the missed meal – you should be drinking loads of water at any rate.
• Buy yourself a dog or cat. Get yourself a turtle for that matter! Studies have verified that pet ownership equals fewer appointments with your doctor, it will improve your longevity and if you have suffered a myocardial infarction it will increase your survivability. Owning a pet will also aid in reducing depression and lower your high blood pressure. It is amazing what having another heart beat in your house can do for your mental outlook.
• If you are suffering from chronic aches, pains or illness you need to be under a physicians care. Chronic pain especially can be very debilitating and can negatively impact your immune levels while altering your immunity system.
Ongoing pain is one of the leading causes of depression and these two ailments go hand in hand. Depression will innately raise your level of cortisol – a hormone associated with negative stress in our systems. Excessive cortisol flowing through our systems is a very bad thing.
• You should start walking more often. Walking is one of the most effective means of improving your health and it must be one of a humans most natural tasks. Humans were engineered to be walkers and as we get older walking will have many important benefits for us. These advantages of walking include keeping our arterial walls supple and soft. Medical experts agree that simply walking for twenty minutes each day will assist most people in avoiding the main age associated illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, dementia etc.
• Try not to argue with others as often. When you argue and fight you are elevating the risk of having congested arteries. You also raise your blood pressure and have spikes in pressure that can result in sudden illness not to mention the damage done from excessive stress. Instead of allowing arguments to seethe and grow, try and be more forgiving and learn to live and let live. Other people are entitled to feel the way they wish so let go of any animosity, it just is not worth it.
• Stock up on plant life in your abode. Plants will not fetch a ball for you but having a garden or sunroom with plants is a great means of reducing your stress or to recover from being sick. It has been verified that when recuperating patients see plants, even at a glance, the experience has benefited them. Tending to plants or doing a bit of gardening is also healthy for your heart and flexibility.
• Increase your strength with some weight training. You will not be sorry thirty or forty years from now that you put in the time to strengthen your muscles and bones by lifting weights. Weight lifting is an effectual way of keeping your long term independence since the first thing to go on most elderly people is their mobility. No mobility means an inability to care for you and your dwelling. It can also be nearly as effective as cardio exercise for the aging physiology. After the age of forty years old your body begins to lose muscle mass at the rate of about a quarter pound yearly. This loss is usually substitutes with fat tissue. When you lift weights for half an hour three times a week you should be able to replace the lost muscle due to innate age progression.
Well, there it is laid out for you. Some practical advice to live a longer and healthier life and you can get started right away without any expense or fuss. Anyone who is of the boomer generation and not doing at least some of the things mentioned above, is fated to live out their later years in less than optimum health and with little independence. I do not know of ANYONE of my boomer generation who could find that acceptable.
These tips are practical and easy for anyone to take on so if you know of someone who fits the description of an aging boomer – or anyone who is “getting up there” in years, put this article under their cereal bowl!
Wed, Aug 18, 2010
Anti Aging, Anti Aging Theories, Gerontology, Longevity