Diet & activities to prevent Aging

Views on aging are changing. Earlier it was believed that health issues are inevitable part of aging. While aging does put us at a greater risk of health issues, many older adults can be healthy and active well into their advanced years. We already know that healthy eating; exercise and physical activity help promote healthy aging.

Unhealthy behaviors such as inactivity, poor diet and smoking have long been associated with a wide range of chronic diseases and risk of death. Such lifestyle factors can also affect older adults’ risk of disability and loss of independence.

Frailty occurs in the elderly and is a result of several contributing factors including malnutrition, low exercise, lack of leisure activities, etc.

Studies also show people who were physically inactive, ate fruits and vegetables less than once a day, and had smoked in the last 15 years were more than twice likely to develop disability than those with none of those unhealthy behaviors. To help with healthy aging, these factors need to be addressed.

First, get moving. High physical activity includes walking more than one hour a day and exercising more than once a week. Promotion of physical activity has been demonstrated to be helpful in maintaining physical functioning in the areas of strength, flexibility, and balance.

Next is smoking. If you have smoked within the past 15 years you have a 26% higher disability risk. Quit smoking today.

Poor diet is at a 24% greater risk of disability. Eating more fruits and vegetables, of course, is only the start of a healthy dietary pattern. Stick to whole grains and minimally processed foods and emphasize on the choices available on the produce and dairy aisles rather than processed and packaged goods aisles. Overweight adults who cut their calorie consumption by 20 to 30 percent correlate with increased longevity. The lower calorie intake also reduces their risk of major causes of mortality such as heart disease and diabetes.

Elderly individuals should also be encouraged to participate in social and cognitively stimulating activities to help maintain cognition and physical functioning.

As the number of unhealthy behaviors rise, from zero to three, risk of disability increases significantly. In the elderly population, addressing these issues helps to maintain physical health, independence, and quality of life.