2 minute read
Better With Age
Whether you’re two years old or 92, we’re all ageing at the same chronological rate. And while we can’t stop the clock, there’s plenty we can do to ensure we are healthy and vital, at any age.
Heres your guide to ageing positively:
1. Staying In Shape
It’s often assumed that getting older means saying goodbye to the trimmer shape of your youth – but weight gain isn’t inevitable. “It’s true that your metabolism slows down a bit, but you can counteract it with lifestyle changes, and by perhaps eating a little less and exercising a little more.”
Nutrition-wise, eating whole, unprocessed foods at every meal will automatically ‘crowd out’ less healthy foods from your diet. In terms of exercise, the national guidelines recommend people over 65 get at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity (such as brisk walking, swimming, dancing or tennis) most days of the week.
2. Protecting Your Brain
As we age, certain cognitive functions naturally decline, but on the flipside, some increase. “Speed or reaction time is one that declines, partly because we’ve got so much more in our heads, but our vocabulary and knowledge improves,” says Dr Nicola Gates, psychologist and author of A Brain For Life. As well as not smoking and moving more, giving your brain a workout is important. “The key thing is novelty or challenge,” advises Gates. For instance, you could pick a topic to research on the internet and become an expert on it, sign up for a community college course, or go for a weekly drive to explore a different suburb.
3. Maintaining Strong Bones
Our bone density gradually declines from around age 45 onwards, so maintaining our ‘bone bank’ reserves is vital to reduce the risk of osteoporosis, which is estimated to affect 23 per cent of women and six per cent of men over 50. Our calcium needs increase from 1000mg a day to 1300mg for women over 50 and for men over 70, so make sure your diet includes plenty of calciumrich foods (think dairy, canned salmon and sardines, almonds, tofu and dried figs). Getting regular bursts of sunshine is also important, as vitamin D (the ‘sunshine vitamin’) helps our body absorb calcium.
4. Staging A Disease Detour
Chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, stroke and dementia become more common with age, but while we can’t change our genetics, we do have control over our lifestyle.
“Even if you’re not able to avoid a chronic condition entirely due to genetic factors, you can minimise the impact or delay the onset with a healthy lifestyle,” adds Cyarto. She suggests taking the NARI Healthy Ageing Quiz, which can be found online, which reveals whether your current lifestyle is helping you age well. “It covers nutrition, activity, weight management, optimism and social connection, with tips on how to improve,” she says.
