Planning your health beyond 2023

It seems counterintuitive to me to set new year resolutions or goals in January. I like to work with the natural rhythm of the earth, and given it has poured with rain for most of January, I have remained in hibernation mode as long as possible, enjoyed it immensely and and am not feeling remotely guilty. I slept an extra hour a night too. For me, the spring equinox is the time to start implementing new health goals – when the earth begins to wake up. I have been giving them quite some thought while catching up with a few health-related podcasts when out walking.

I recently listened to two longevity experts with two very different perspectives on nutrition; one advocating high quality protein intake from good quality meat sources, coupled with a high plant intake (but not grains) and supplements (nutraceuticals), as the way to go. The other advocated a mostly plant-based diet, with beans every day. It was a respectful discussion and actually they have much in common. They both said that a high plant intake, time-restricted feeding, good sleep, a sense of purpose and strong social connections are all supported by science. All true.

Work backwards

Then I listened to a third longevity expert who, in my opinion, made the most sense of all. He challenged his listeners to think about how long they wanted to live, what they hoped to be doing, and then to work backwards in order to achieve those goals.

This approach may differ depending upon how old you are now and how long you want to live! If, for example, you want to be playing with your grand/great grandchildren in your 90s, you need a particular level of fitness to be running around, so it might not be a bad idea to get a better handle on how fit you are now (you can be checked by a fitness professional who can calculate your bio-age from a few well-known exercises and put a plan together for you). For this speaker, fitness was more important than nutrition. What he meant by that is that you can have a fabulous diet, but if you are not physically fit, what’s the point if you can’t lift yourself out of your armchair?

A consistent plan

There are five things we should be aiming to do every day to maintain both our physical and mental health. There is no replacement for these things. How many of these do you already do and where do you need to put the work in?

• Sleep

I have written about sleep on these pages before (‘three surprising ways to sleep better’ The BV, Apr 22) and my website has lots of tips on how to optimise it. Most people need between six and eight hours a night. Teenagers more. Coupled with sleep is sunlight, sometimes known as circadian light therapy. Get out in the sunlight, ideally in the morning. Exposing your eyes to sunlight helps to align your circadian rhythm and produce serotonin, which in turn helps to make melatonin, the darkness hormone. This helps you feel more tired in the evening, improves sleep and helps you to feel more awake in the morning.

• Hydration

It is not that well known that we need to increase our hydration as we get older. It plays an essential role in many health issues. Good hydration plays a key role in mental health, sleep quality and cognitive ability.

Dehydration in the elderly is very common. Between the age of 20 and 80 years, there is a 15% reduction in water volume in our bodies, which is why the elderly get dehydrated faster. Lower water volumes mean a poorer response to temperature regulation and an increased strain on the heart.

• Movement

Ideally an hour a day. Learn about NEAT (non exercise activity thermogenesis – spontaneous activities that occur every time you perform some sort of physical exertion, such as standing up from a seated position, running to catch the bus or even simply fidgeting). Try to do something every day that gets your breathing rate up. You will live longer and you will feel better. Get assessed professionally if you can to get focused.

• Nutrition

Try and get 75 to 80 per cent of your food from minimally processed foods. As we age, the need for protein increases. This is because we are less efficient at using protein compared to younger adults. If we don’t meet these increased needs we can lose muscle and lean mass and have a lower immune function, all of which play a role in increased risks of frailty and illness. Consult a professional for personalised goals or where you have specific health concerns.

• Social connection

Do what you can to make the interactions that you have with friends, family, as well as online, as healthy as possible. Some people are more introverted than others, so do what is meaningful for you to maintain high-quality social connections. I guarantee that if you do these five things, your health will benefit.

Now set your long term goals!

Hello and welcome to my February column! I am so pleased to see the evenings starting to draw out and even see the first signs of spring in my garden – one of my favourite times of year.

Christmas already seems like a long time ago and business in Dorset has quickly got back to full-speed. Many businesses I speak to are optimistic about the future. But there is no doubt we are still seeing some challenges: access to finance is still a problem for many businesses, Brexit has had an extremely negative impact on export activities and many are still facing severe recruitment problems. And of course the energy cost crisis continues, genuinely threatening to put many out of business. However, it was encouraging to see that inflation has dipped to just over 10%; nowhere near the 17 to 20% that was predicted not that long ago. The sharp intervention of raising interest rates to 3.5% by the Bank of

England, the highest rate for 14 years, seems to be working. Although this brings much pain for many with mortgages and loans, interest rate rises are one of the primary weapons for tackling inflation by decreasing money circulating in the economy.

It’s a hard pill to swallow but one that we must. Despite this, I still see much optimism from the business community; many are simply switching off from the constant negative messaging in the media and just want to get on with things.

I totally understand this; we must maintain a positive approach, look for solutions if we encounter problems and, crucially, not be afraid to seek help and ask for advice and guidance.

Research shows that businesses that take advice at an earlier stage have a far greater chance of survival than those that leave it until later. There is help out there and if Dorset Chamber can support in any way, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Dorset Apprenticeship Awards

National Apprenticeship Week begins on 6th February and I am delighted to announce that once again we will be running our Dorset Apprenticeship Awards in partnership with the Dorset and Somerset Training Provider Network.

The awards are completely free to enter and open to people of all ages on apprenticeship programmes and all sectors. They naturally celebrate the contributions of apprenticeships to business but also the personal journey and achievements of apprentices themselves. From Monday you can apply for the awards on our website (dorsetchamber.co.uk) – we will celebrate finalists and winners at a special ceremony on 16th May. If you are on an apprenticeship programme, or employ an apprentice, I’d really encourage you to enter!

Until next time, Ian.