Ways to Stay Healthy and Active
One way to stay healthy and active is to eat healthy. What eating healthy means is emphasizing vegetables, fruits, low-fat milk and whole grains. (1) Include in your diet lean meats, fish and poultry. Also include nuts, eggs and beans. Making your calories count is very important. Most of your foods should have vitamins, fiber, minerals, and lower in calories. This will help you stay healthy and be physically active.
Another way to stay healthy and active is to exercise every day. Exercise is extremely important and should be a part of your daily routine. It can be simple exercise like yoga or walking or more intense cardio like the elliptical. You can really do any exercise that fits your personal lifestyle.
A third way to stay healthy and active is to take charge of your health. There are certain ailments that can affect you as you get older. Some being Osteoporosis, Glaucoma, hearing loss, and arthritis. “As you age, your body begins to absorb old bone tissue faster than new bone tissue can be created, and your bones tend to become thinner and weaker.”(2) One way to combat Osteoporosis is to ask your doctor for a bone density test yearly. Glaucoma is an age-related health problem affecting vision. Your Ophthalmologist will usually check for glaucoma at regular office visits. Hearing loss affects most aging people. Ask your doctor to do regular hearing tests to combat the possibility of significant hearing loss and don’t be afraid to use a hearing aid if necessary. Arthritis can be literally a pain, and affects 43 million people in the U.S. Don’t hesitate to ask your doctor for help if you experience joint pain.
To learn more on these topics please read (1) "Eating Right Isn't Complicated" by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and (2) "10 Health Conditions to Watch For as You Age" by Dennis Thompson, Jr.
Healthy Eating!
Nutrition is very important; it determines the body’s internal chemistry. Most people think that age does, but that is not the case. The condition of bones, skin, brain, and connective tissue are all influenced by diet. Eating habits have a big role in how quickly you feel the effects of aging and how you age. Whole, healthy foods are the best tools for aging well.
Partially hydrogenated oils (trans fats), sugar, and refined carbohydrates are just some foods that have negative effects on aging. Other factors that affect aging are waiting too long to eat and eating because you’re stressed.
The fixes are relatively easy. One fix is to stop eating so much processed foods and stick to eating more fruits, veggies and omega 3 fatty acids. Cutting back on sugar is another way to have a more positive aging outcome. Instead choose foods with natural sweeteners like maple syrup or honey. Eating whole kernel grains instead of refined carbohydrates is extremely beneficial to being healthy and aging well.
Don’t wait until you are starving to eat, when you do this you are depriving your body of nutrition to the point where you will over eat. When you feel a moderate hunger is when it is most beneficial and it is good to eat a snack of nuts. A great fix for stress eating is drinking a glass of water before you grab anything to eat. Stress eating is one of the biggest downfalls for either losing weight or keeping on track with your weight management. Stress eating also affects aging. When you stress eat you usually don’t choose the healthiest things to eat.
Since you can now identify the habits that cause you to age faster. Now is a good time to examine your own self and your habits. No one makes the right choice all of the time, but if a snack here and there turns into a daily habit then it can turn into a problem. Starting a bad eating habit can seriously damage your body’s repair system.
To learn more about healthy eating and aging please read; "Food Habits That Age You." By Catherine Guthrie; Expierence Life contributing editor.
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