Healthy Aging

HEALTHY AGING

Dear friends, followers and neighbors,

Many that know me know I am a nurse, a nutritionist, and a health coach. I am in my 60’s and I strive, every day, to live and eat healthy, and my article is all about aging well. I hope it makes an impact on you because I want you to have a long, happy and fulfilling life, well into your senior years.

Question? Are you afraid of death? Most people are. Are people afraid of dying or are they more fearful of the unknown and leaving behind what is comfortable and most familiar. If we knew a life in Utopia awaited us at the end of our physical life, we would be less reluctant to let go and more prepared to embrace what lies ahead. But we don’t know, do we? Instead, we cling to life even when sometimes it is a life filled with pain, suffering, and hopelessness. Death is part of the life cycle; there is no getting around it. However, disease and illness do not have to be.

Honestly, I am not afraid of death; not at all. But I am afraid of aging poorly and becoming a burden to my children, siblings, friends, and to society.

Aging poorly can cost you, your loved ones and society a lot of time, resources, and money. It can rob you of a life well lived. It can destroy families and cause undue stress and fatigue. It can destroy careers, marriages, and financial stability. It can result in feelings of resentment, guilt, and depression.

Instead of retiring and enjoying the active lifestyle that was planned for decades, people who age poorly spend their retirement traveling from one doctor’s appointment to another and much of their savings on expensive medications; medical supplies; and home care. They depend on family and friends for transportation, socialization, companionship and home support.

Statistics show that people are living longer. But that doesn’t mean they are living better. We now have such advances in medical science that we are spared the inevitable fate of an early death that once plagued our ancestors. And yes, while these advances in technology and medicine result in a longer life, they also contribute to economic catastrophe. Currently, health care expenditure in the United States is 20% of the GDP, and that’s absurd!

I had the good fortune of working in a nursing home in Newton, Massachusetts during the summers of my Nursing School years. I was only 18 years old when I started caring for the elderly, and it made a huge, but scary impression. Back then, patients in their 60’s and 70’s were considered “old,” and so many were disabled and bedridden. Most of the residents in the Home walked with canes or walkers or required caretaker assistance to ambulate. Many were dependent on wheelchairs to navigate from their rooms to the dining hall for meals.

Almost every resident suffered from one or more of the serious chronic diseases of aging such as heart disease, stroke, COPD, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, and dementia. From my young perspective, residents were pretty much confined to a life of four walls, 3 meals a day, afternoons sitting on the porch, and weekly Bingo. A weekly visit from a family member was considered a celebration and major event, not to mention the highlight of their week. At eighteen years of age, it was a horrifying image and a glimpse of my fate in 50 years, should I be so lucky to live that long.

I always knew I wanted to become a nurse and help people; and that’s what I do. But to be completely honest and fair, it really bothers me when people don’t take responsibility for their health and wellness. Once, very sick with Lupus, I had to fight my way back to good health, making many sacrifices and life changes in the process. I am thankful today I made those choices.

Yet, many people are very irresponsible when it comes to healthy lifestyle practices; some even border on reckless. Of course, this doesn’t apply to everyone. Even the most health-conscious individuals can fall victim to illness and disease. But many of the patients I see on a daily basis have some responsibility for their fate. You just cannot go through your adult life making unhealthy choices without paying a price in your senior years. As a nurse and health care provider for > 40 years, I have seen the devastation and calamity chronic disease can inflict on a family; diseases that, in 75% – 80% of cases, could have been mitigated or avoided. It is called inflammation, as Dr. Michael Lam so nicely coined the term.

Healthy aging should be the BEST and most important gift we give to ourselves and our loved ones. Healthy aging is not all about eating a healthy diet. It involves many factors, sacrifice, and making good choices. It is a mindful process requiring caution, self-discipline, and good selections. It does not take rocket science to figure out what those factors are; we are blasted with health information everyday. The consensual recommendations are listed below:

1. Eat a healthy, whole food diet in modest portions.
2. Exercise regularly – every day if possible.
3. Weight control is essential.
4. If you smoke – STOP!
5. Reduce your stress. Chronic unattended stress is a killer.
6. Drink alcohol in moderation. The recommendation is 1 – 2 glasses wine/day.
7. Keep your brain active and well-hydrated.

Unfortunately, it usually takes a heart attack or a cancer diagnosis to make people change their bad habits. Yet, what most people do not know or consider is that in most cases, these events can been prevented. The body is very forgiving. It is never too late to reverse some, and sometimes ALL, the damage done over the years from a less-than-healthy lifestyle.

The secret to healthy aging doesn’t mean resorting to extreme dieting or rigorous exercise routines. The rules are simple and straightforward. What is required? The five (5) D’s to aging healthy.

1. Decision – making up your mind let go of your bad habits and embrace good ones
2. Determination – to be healthier, more active, more mindful
3. Dedication – to having the best healthy life possible
4. Discipline – to sticking with it, no matter how difficult, even when you’re tempted.
5. Devotion – devoting yourself from thereon in to a new healthy lifestyle; a life change you know that will have a positive impact on your senior years and the lives of the ones you love

Think about how you want to spend your remaining years; as an active and independent senior, or as an elderly, disabled, and dependent person. I don’t know about you, but when I turn 80, I want to look and feel like Jane Fonda, with a sharp mind and a fierce independence and spirited personality like Katherine Hepburn.

Thirty years ago, Nike’s iconic slogan “Just Do It” helped the company become a worldwide phenomenon that has stood the test of time. Let the slogan help you move gracefully through your senior years to a state of abundant energy, good health, and a fabulous ending to your life.

Barb Doherty, MS, BSN, RN, PAHM, LNC, CHHC