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By Melissa Tennen, HealthAtoZ writer
Think of aging. What comes to mind? Wrinkles? Gray hair? Aches and pains? It's not a pretty picture, is it?
Just because your body ages, don't think you are destined to a fate of hobbling from doctor to doctor. Genes account for only a third of the problems related to aging. The rest come from lifestyle habits and choices. Remember, it's never too late to start sprucing up your life. You can take the right steps to help you live to a ripe old age full of energy and vitality if you follow these 10 tips to aging well:
- Exercise. Anyone can exercise, regardless of age or activity level. Working out helps your heart stay strong, controls your weight and helps lower your cholesterol and blood pressure. Activity also helps decrease your risk for certain cancers, strengthens bones and joints, helps relieve arthritis pain, lowers the risk of diabetes, reduces symptoms of depression and improves sleep. Exercise doesn't need to be strenuous. Take a walk around the block or lift 2-pound weights.
- Give up tobacco. If anything reduces your lifespan and quality of life, it's smoking. Smokers are much more likely to have heart problems, suffer a stroke or develop cancer. You also have a greater chance of developing deadly lung diseases like emphysema.
- Eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables. This can help reduce your risk for certain cancers. A healthy diet can also reduce the chances for diverticulosis, a disease of the colon. A good low-fat, low-sodium diet can also help lower cholesterol and blood pressure.
- Drink enough water. Water is essential for life and the chemical processes in your body. Since we aren't always aware that we need fluids, keep drinking, even if you don't feel thirsty.
- Stay out of the sun. Too much sun can raise your risk for the eye disease macular degeneration. It also causes wrinkles and skin cancer. When you are in the sun, consider a hat and sunscreen.
- Keep your mind sharp. You lose brainpower if you don't use your mind enough. Short-term memory can decline as you get older. Read books, do puzzles and play games or take up a new hobby.
- Don't drink too much. Too much alcohol damages your liver and your body's cells, which causes your body to age faster.
- Cultivate friendships and strengthen family ties. This helps reduce stress and prevents depression. Research shows that people with strong bonds have less trouble coping and less stress.
- Stop stressing! Studies show people who live to 100 tend to deal well with emotional stress. Change your attitude about stress and adopt stress-coping strategies, like deep breathing or yoga.
- Take your medications, get regular checkups and follow your doctor's orders. Drugs that help lower cholesterol and blood pressure can reduce your risk for heart disease, heart attacks and strokes. Medications for osteoporosis help maintain and rebuild bone.
- Have regular screenings. Ask your doctor about regular screenings for high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes and colon cancer. Women should get screenings for cervical cancer, osteoporosis and breast cancer. Men should be checked for prostate and testicular cancers.
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External Sources
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The Johns Hopkins Medical Letter
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Alliance for Aging Research
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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This article was reviewed and updated June 2007.
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