Old Age Ain’t No Place For Sissies! Are You Ready?!
You don’t relish the thought of moving out of your home and into a “retirement community.” Who would? It’s a sign that you’re giving up your freedom. So, here’s how you can stay in your home as long as possible.
Are You Really Ready For Old Age?!
Did you know that Canada had more than 5,000 centenarians in 2011? But, in 46 years, that number may top 78,000. In the U.S., the number is even higher – 53,364 in 2010, and going forward, that number is expected to rise dramatically.
Life expectancy keeps increasing, partially because of medical technology keeping people alive longer. For example, recent statistics show that life expectancy is likely to continue to rise over the coming decades in both the U.S. and Canada.
In Japan, the numbers look even better – nearly 37 centenarians per 100,000 people, which is more than twice Canada’s rate.
In the UK, Italy, and France, the number of centenarians is also on the rise.
While medical technology promises to keep people going, there are some things that you can do to improve your odds of living that long, and do it while improving the quality of life you have at those advanced ages (something these statistics and reports don’t cover).
The first thing is strength training.
Yes, picking up a barbell and lifting weights may help you live a better life later. Why? Because the stress you apply to your body now builds both muscle and helps make bones more dense. One of the leading causes of death and injury in older populations is falls – specifically hip fractures.
But, by strengthening your hip flexors, extensors, and glutes, hamstrings, quads, and core muscles, you will reduce the risk of falling and also reduce the risk of a fracture if you do fall.
Point blank: strong people are harder to kill than weak people.
A good place to start, if you’re not familiar with strength training is the program, “Starting Strength.”
What To Eat And Why
People who live long and healthy lives tend to eat a healthier-than-normal diet. They tend to focus on foods that are anti-inflammatory and that are natural and “whole.”
They avoid processed foods like potato chips, french fries, and boxed foods.
The key is to lower inflammation. According to some research, chronic inflammation underlies nearly all modern diseases and illnesses. While acute inflammation is necessary when we’re injured, chronic, low-grade inflammation is actually very, very bad for us.
What To Look For On Blood Panels
Get blood tests done. Ask your doctor to measure C-reactive protein, and other markers of inflammation. Since inflammation is known to affect the boy in negative ways, you’ll want to keep it in check. Fortunately, there are specific tests that can be done to measure, track and monitor it.
You can also get tests done to monitor micronutrient status, amino acid status, and other factors which may play a role in how your body deals with inflammation. For example, it’s known that magnesium can help reduce inflammation in the body. If you’re not getting enough of it in your diet, it may be contributing to systemic inflammation.
Having an electrolyte panel will give you important details about your magnesium status.
The One Test That May Predict It All
If there’s one test that you could take to help you figure out your overall health status, it’s a gut pathogen screen. This is a special test that checks for infections in the gut, disruption of intestinal bacteria, and potential diseases which may be caused by such infections.
Hippocrates once claimed that “All disease begins in the gut.” Today, we are finding that this is, for the most part, true. Disruption of gut bacteria can cause inflammation, which can trigger many different kinds of illnesses with many different kinds of symptoms.
What To Do When You Can’t Live Alone
There is an excellent senior home care service out there that can help you when you can’t live at home alone anymore. A qualified healthcare practitioner will visit you at home and help you accomplish daily chores and tasks.
Most of these types of services can be scaled up or down as needed. If you need help cleaning up the house on the weekend, for example, you can hire someone to help you with those chores. If you need help taking your medication, you can have a nurse or someone licensed to provide medical care, come to your home and help you with that, too.