10 Essential Health Tips For Seniors (6-10)

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6. Stay up-to-date on immunizations and other health screenings. By age 50, women should begin mammography screening for breast cancer. Men can be checked for prostate cancer. Many preventive screenings are available. Those who are new to Medicare are entitled to a “Welcome to Medicare” visit and all Medicare members to an annual wellness visit. Use these visits to discuss which preventative screenings and vaccinations are due.

7. Prevent skin cancer. As we age, our skin grows thinner; it becomes drier and less elastic. Wrinkles appear, and cuts and bruises take longer to heal. Be sure to protect your skin from the sun. Too much sun and ultraviolet rays can cause skin cancer.

8. Get regular dental, vision and hearing checkups. Your teeth and gums will last a lifetime if you care for them properly—that means daily brushing and flossing and getting regular dental checkups. By age 50, most people notice changes to their vision, including a gradual decline in the ability to see small print or focus on close objects. Common eye problems that can impair vision include cataracts and glaucoma. Hearing loss occurs commonly with aging, often due to exposure to loud noise.

9. Manage stress. Try exercise or relaxation techniques—perhaps meditation or yoga—as a means of coping. Make time for friends and social contacts and fun. Successful coping can affect our health and how we feel. Learn the role of positive thinking.

10. Fan the flame. When it comes to sexual intimacy and aging, age is no reason to limit your sexual enjoyment. Learn about physical changes that come with aging and get suggestions to help you adjust to them, if necessary.

Source: parentgiving

Essential Health Tips For Seniors (1-5)

The first wave of baby boomers are turning 65 years old this year and becoming "senior boomers" and Medicare-eligible. In fact, more than 10,000 baby boomers a day are now turning 65—that’s one every eight seconds, a pattern expected to continue for the next 19 years.

Happily, aging is different now than it was for our parents and grandparents. Today, there are more people living longer than at any other time in history. In fact, boomers will number 78 million by 2030. “This generation, associated with social change including the civil rights and anti-war movements in the 1960s, has another important cause—staying healthy,” says soon-to-be 65-year-old Arthur Hayward, MD, a geriatrician and clinical lead physician for Kaiser Permanente. “We need to become activists in promoting healthful behaviors and try our best to remain active and healthy the rest of our lives.”

How to do it? Dr. Hayward recommends these 10 easy health tips for seniors to help baby boomers live longer and thrive:

1.   Quit smoking. Take this critical step to improve your health and combat aging. Smoking kills by causing cancer, strokes and heart failure. Smoking leads to erectile dysfunction in men due to atherosclerosis and to excessive wrinkling by attacking skin elasticity. Many resources are available to help you quit.

2.   Keep active. Do something to keep fit each day—something you enjoy that maintains strength, balance and flexibility and promotes cardiovascular health. Physical activity helps you stay at a healthy weight, prevent or control illness, sleep better, reduce stress, avoid falls and look and feel better, too.

3.   Eat well. Combined with physical activity, eating nutritious foods in the right amounts can help keep you healthy. Many illnesses, such as heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and osteoporosis, can be prevented or controlled with dietary changes and exercise. Calcium and vitamin D supplements can help women prevent osteoporosis.

4.   Maintain a healthy weight. Extra weight increases your risk for heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. Use the Kaiser Permanente BMI (body mass index) calculator to find out what you should weigh for your height. Get to your healthy weight and stay there by eating right and keeping active. Replace sugary drinks with water—water is calorie free!

5.   Prevent falls. We become vulnerable to falls as we age. Prevent falls and injury by removing loose carpet or throw rugs. Keep paths clear of electrical cords and clutter, and use night-lights in hallways and bathrooms. Did you know that people who walk barefoot fall more frequently? Wear shoes with good support to reduce the risk of falling.

Source: parentgiving.com

Professional Help: 5 Tips for Senior Citizens on Simple, Healthy Living

BY HANS VILLARICA

When it comes to their well-being, older adults shouldn't act like victims to aging. They should be active—physically, socially, and spiritually.

To slow down the physical and mental decline that comes with age, drugs and exercise aren't enough. According to a study out of the University of Southern California, a lifestyle makeover is necessary.

Professor and occupational therapist Florence Clark shares five tips for seniors on sustainable, successful aging from herJournal of Epidemiology and Community Health paper (PDF). Thankfully, her method, while backed by rigorous research, is also surprisingly simple: walk outside, meet up with friends, go to church, and just be as active as possible.

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It's never too late to go healthy. Anybody, young or old, can successfully redesign the way they live to be healthier. While we don't have a say in our own genetic makeup, greater than 50 percent of our mental and physical health status is related to lifestyle. You can even start small: ride public transportation, reconnect with a long-lost friend, join a ballroom dance class, or follow guidelines on how to safely move around the community. The point is, try something new and be willing to learn.

Take control of your health. Appreciate the relationship between what you do, how you feel, and their impact on your well-being. Our research suggests that social and productive activities are as important as physical ones for staying healthy. As we age, even deceptively simple or downright mundane pursuits like reading the newspaper, cooking a potluck dish, walking the dog, or going to church have a powerful influence on our physical and mental health.

Know thyself. The guiding principle of Socrates rings just as true today as it did in ancient Athens. Lifestyle changes are most sustainable when they fit into the fabric of your everyday life -- your interests, schedule, and self-concept. Identify supports on your journey that are strong enough to counterbalance the obstacles you face. Set goals that are challenging but still realistic enough to be achieved.

Anticipate how chronic conditions may affect your plan. Over 70 percent of seniors age 65 and older have a chronic condition, such as hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, COPD, or cataracts. Don't let these impede your progress. Before a big game, elite athletes visualize their performance in their minds' eye. So too should you be prepared for the potential ways you might have to adapt or improvise. And, of course, consult your physician in advance about any new activities.

Living longer can also mean living better. Our research demonstrates that maintaining a mix of productive, social, physical, and spiritual activities as you age can lead to increased vitality, social function, mental health, and life satisfaction, along with decreased symptoms of depression and self-reported bodily pain. Even better, activity-centric lifestyle interventions to ward off illness and disability may also be more cost-effective and have fewer negative side effects than prescription drugs.

Source: theatlantic

Tips for Eye Health in Adults Over 60

Women’s Higher Risk for Some Eye Diseases

Women are more likely than men to have glaucoma and women are also more likely to be visually impaired or blind due to glaucoma. Also, women are 24 percent less likely to be treated for glaucoma. Cataract is somewhat more common in women, as well. Women should be sure to follow the Academy’s screening guidelines and adhere to their Eye M.D.’s follow-up appointment recommendations and treatment plans.

Low Vision

The term low vision describes vision loss that makes daily tasks difficult. Normal aging of the eye does not lead to low vision; it is a result of eye diseases, injuries or both. Low vision symptoms include loss of central and/or peripheral (side) vision, blurred or hazy vision or night blindness. A person may have trouble recognizing faces, reading, driving and shopping. If you experience any of these problems, it is important to see your Eye M.D., who will check for and treat any underlying conditions and advise on low vision resources and low vision aids and devices to help with reading and other daily tasks. Most people with low vision need brighter lighting in their living areas.

Avoid Falls and Related Eye Injuries

About half of all eye injuries occur in or around the home, most often during improvement projects (44 percent). The good news is that nearly all eye injuries can be prevented by using protective eyewear, so every household needs to have at least one pair of certified safety glasses on hand.

It’s also important to reduce the risk of falls, which become more likely as we age, due to changes in vision and balance. Consider taking these safety steps around the home to diminish the risks of injuring your eyes:

• Make sure that rugs and shower/bath/tub mats are slip-proof.
• Secure railings so that they are not loose.
• Cushion sharp corners and edges of furnishings and home fixtures.

Systemic health problems

Systemic health problems like high blood pressure and diabetes that may be diagnosed or become more problematic in midlife can also affect eye health. One warning sign of both high blood pressure and diabetes is when the ability to see clearly changes frequently. Be sure to keep your Eye M.D. informed about your health conditions and use of medications and nutritional supplements, as well as your exercise, eating, sleeping and other lifestyle choices.

Exercise

Our eyes need good blood circulation and oxygen intake, and both are stimulated by regular exercise. Regular exercise also helps keep our weight in the normal range, which reduces the risk of diabetes and of diabetic retinopathy. Gentler exercise, including walking, yoga, tai chi, or stretching and breathing, can also be effective ways to keep healthy. Remember to use sun safety and protective eyewear when enjoying sports and recreation.

Sleep

As we sleep, our eyes enjoy continuous lubrication. Also during sleep the eyes clear out irritants such as dust, allergens, or smoke that may have accumulated during the day.

Some research suggests that light-sensitive cells in the eye are important to our ability to regulate our wake-sleep cycles. This becomes more crucial as we age, when more people have problems with insomnia. While it’s important that we protect our eyes from over-exposure to UV light, our eyes also need exposure to some natural light every day to help maintain normal sleep-wake cycles.

Source: geteyesmart.org

Tips To Improve Mental Health In The Old Age

image from insurancekhabri

Most people start getting worried about their physical health by the time they attain their old age. They often visit the doctors and also take medicines as prescribed by him to keep himself free from age-related diseases. However, in the process, they tend to ignore one very important aspect of health - mental health. A person can be healthy in the holistic sense only if he is both physically and mentally healthy. There are certain ways in which a person can stay mentally healthy during his old age.

Learn something of your choice

There are a number of things that we wanted to do but could not accomplish because of our busy schedule during the middle-age. These may include learning a language, writing a novel and getting a book published, attending seminars and lectures and learn new software on the internet. But now since you have a lot of time, you can always take up one such activity and keep yourself busy. You can also revive an old hobby or develop a new one. These may include reading, gardening, golfing, playing an instrument, solving puzzles and a whole lot of things. Do not think twice and go ahead with one of these activities.

Physical exercise

Physical exercises always keep you healthy and are particularly important in the old age when the body requires huge dose to remain physically fit and mentally active. Working out daily not only improves blood circulation, but also lowers body fat and helps you fight diseases. Because the person need not be concerned about his physical ailments always, he is mentally content, has less of depression and anxiety, which in turn lessens prolonged disease like obesity and dementia. A morning walk also keeps you healthy and keeps your cholesterol under control.

Spend time with your grandchildren

In the old age, becoming grandparents and leaving your progenies behind can be one of the greatest achievements ever. It has been observed that those grandparents who are in touch with their grandchildren and get to spend some time with them are both mentally and physically healthy than those who cannot. You can not only get back to your childhood days and learn a lot more from them, but these young people can help you remain youthful and fit.

Right time to socialize

Old age is the right time to socialize and keep in touch with friends regularly. All these years, you did not get the golden opportunity to socialize with old friends, because of your hectic schedule and other priorities. Even social interactions in the park and other public places keep the mind active. You will also get conscious in the way you look and dress up and this in turn will make you happy. These days you can also leverage the social networking sites to be in touch with old friends.

Take up short travels

You can consider taking up short trips that are really enjoyable. This will not only make you feel happy mentally but will also have a positive impact on your overall health and well being.

Source: tipstostayhealthy

Health Tips for Old Age: Get a Long and Healthy Life

By Tania Hackner

Everyone wants to be healthy and vigorous throughout their life. But more so being healthy in old age is just like a boon. Since, old age brings with itself many health problems and if you are not taking complete care of yourself then these diseases becomes hard to cure and manage in old age. Here are given some useful health tips for old age:

Drink enough water:  It cleanses your body machinery and helps your heart in functioning well. Drinking of enough water will keep away chances of kidney stone and urine problem. It will also keep you looking young and active along with natural glow on your face.

Exercise regularly: Inclusion of regular exercise in your daily life is the best health tips for old age. Exercising will not only help in promoting brain regeneration but also obviate decline in body parts. Practice any form on exercise depending on what you and your body can manage. Talk to you health care provider on what exercise you should undertake in your old age. Seniors can also use yoga which generates flexibility and balance in their body.

Well balanced diet: Well balanced diet plays a very important part in keeping you healthy in old age. Avoid taking rich food like sweets, high stuffed and fried. As it will leave impact on your lever and may result in damaging it. You should add calcium rich diet as it will strengthen your bones. In old age teeth becomes week and so diet should also be soft cooked so that it intake is easy. Add fruits, vegetables and greens in your daily diet to maintain your health in old age. Proper nutritional food keeps many diseases away and also save you from common problems of aging. Addition of nutrition food can save from problem like obesity, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and osteoporosis as these are generally prevalent nutrition related health problems which occur in old age. 

Be happy and engage in recreational activities: During old age, Factors like social isolation, low income and depression affect health in old age. Loneliness is a common problem in old age and leads to related problems. During this time, it becomes all the more important for seniors to take on some activity which occupy their time. Take part in social activities and indulge in pursuing your hobbies in spare time. Make friends and make use of their company to keep yourself active and happy. 

Be happy and visit your doctor regularly: During old age, seniors should take deep care of their health. This includes a regular visit to a health care professional. You should visit and consult your doctor regularly and try to implement all the suggestions and precautions given by your doctor.

Health in old age is not that hard to have and maintain. All you need is to follow some simple steps which can be easily included in your daily life without much effort. Most likely you are to know them already but now is the time to get started. 

Source: articlesbase