Aging Healthfully

Seeing this edition of the CAT’s theme is based on senior citizens I thought I would discuss what us old timers can do to stay healthy as we age. So much talk on planning for retirement is directed towards investments while ignoring a person’s health. What good is wealth without health? We also need to invest our time, effort and money to improving and maintaining our health. Who wants to be suffering from heart disease, arthritis or some other disabling disease in your golden years? It isn’t as hard as one thinks either. What it really involves is some positive health habits. Once you begin and start feeling better it will become much easier and natural.

The first step is to invest in quality food. If you spend your hard earned money on refined and highly processed foods your health will deteriorate. If you make wise choices by purchasing whole, natural and if possible organic foods you will see a difference. It also tastes better too. Most people eat more grains and meats than fruits and vegetables but by trying to incorporate between five and seven one half cup servings of fresh fruits and vegetables per day you will be pleasantly surprised on how good your feel. Next is to purchase whole grains not white flour products. Another important step is to purchase natural sugars not artificial or refined sugar. So raw honey, xylitol, organic brown sugar, stevia are some wise choices. It has been proven that if you crave sugary snacks and white flour products it means you need to eat more healthy fats and protein.

There also has been a lot of talk about eating low fat or no fat but as I have discussed before the body requires fat as our brain is made up of fat but it has to be high quality. So avoid margarine, shortening and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. Use instead olive oil, organic butter and cream, coconut oil, avocados and nuts.

Food is to our body what gas is to your car. It is fuel. It helps us function . So if you have a diet of cheap junk food you will feel tired and weak and it will have negative effects on your body. Spending a few extra dollars on quality food now will prevent doctor and hospital bills later.

Another important step to aging healthfully is to make sure to drink plenty of good pure water. People are not generally water drinkers and feel they only need to drink it when they are thirsty. Not true. If you wait until then you are already dehydrated. The general rule of thumb is to take your body weight cut it in half and convert that to ounces. So a one hundred pound person would need fifty ounces of water per day. But the body only uses one quarter cup at a time so guzzling down a twelve ounce glass does one no good. Your body will only pee it out. Sipping during the day is a better choice. Deep breathing is also vital for good health. Most people have shallow breathing. They are not getting oxygen into their body very well. These two good habits can help reduce pain and inflammation in one’s body and at the same time give one more energy and good health.

There are a few more things I want to discuss but will have to wait until my next column.

Till next time,

Diane L. Toombs, CNHC
www.mynsp.com/toombs
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The information in this article is for educational purposes only and is not meant for diagnosing or prescribing.