Manage Getting Older

Even though people generally enjoy a greater life expectancy nowadays, the aging process can be a painful fact to come to terms with. The truth, however, is that many older people are afraid of what they don’t understand, which will only worsen as the years roll by.

This is an example of where knowledge is power; the power to take control over how you age. Once you are aware of and understand the changes that are happening in your body as you age, you will be in a better position to cope with them. In the following text, we look in-depth at the changes that occur and how older adults can cope with them, primarily focusing on the common physical changes one can anticipate.

Your Bones, Joint, and Muscles

With age, bones tend to shrink in size and density, weakening them and making them more susceptible to fracture. This change is especially true for women who are post-menopausal and can result in osteoporosis. You might even become a bit shorter. Muscles generally lose strength, endurance, and flexibility — factors that can affect your coordination, stability, and balance.

When this reduction of bone mass occurs, we become more vulnerable to falls, which, in many cases, cause injuries and are much more dangerous than when we are younger. Healing from such injuries becomes impaired as we advance in age.

This slow healing process is due to a weak immunity associated with old age. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls are the highest cause of death related to injury among seniors.

What you can do

To promote bone, joint, and muscle health:

• Get adequate amounts of calcium. The National Academy of Science, Engineering, and Medicine recommends at least 1,000 milligrams (mg) of calcium daily for adults. The recommendation increases to 1,200 mg daily for women age 51 and older and men age 71 and older. Dietary sources of calcium include dairy products, broccoli, kale, salmon, and tofu. If you find it difficult to get enough calcium from your diet, ask your doctor about calcium supplements.
• Get adequate amounts of vitamin D. The recommended daily intake of vitamin D is 600 international units for adults up to age 70 and 800 IU for adults over 70. Many people get adequate amounts of vitamin D from sunlight. Other sources include tuna, salmon, eggs, vitamin D-fortified milk, and vitamin D supplements.
• Include physical activity in your daily routine. Weight-bearing exercises, such as walking, jogging, tennis, climbing stairs, and weight training, can help you build strong bones and slow bone loss.
• Avoid substance abuse. Avoid smoking and limit alcoholic drinks. Ask your doctor about how much alcohol might be safe for your age, sex, and general health.

Your cardiovascular system

The most common change in the cardiovascular system is the stiffening of the blood vessels and arteries, causing your heart to work harder to pump blood through them. The heart muscles change to adjust to the increased workload. Your heart rate at rest will stay about the same, but it won’t increase during activities as much as it used to. These changes increase the risk of high blood pressure (hypertension) and other cardiovascular problems.

What you can do

To promote heart health:

• Include physical activity in your daily routine. Try walking, swimming or other activities you enjoy. Regular moderate physical activity can help you maintain a healthy weight and lower your heart disease risk.
• Eat a healthy diet. Choose vegetables, fruits, whole grains, high-fiber foods, and lean sources of protein, such as fish. Limit foods high in saturated fat and salt.
• Don’t smoke. Smoking contributes to the hardening of your arteries and increases your blood pressure and heart rate. If you smoke or use other tobacco products, ask your doctor to help you quit.
• Manage stress. Stress can take a toll on your heart. Take steps to reduce stress, such as meditation, exercise, or talk therapy.
• Get enough sleep. Quality sleep plays an important role in the healing and repair of your heart and blood vessels. Aim for seven to nine hours a night.

Your Brain and Nervous System

As you advance in age, you can expect changes in your reflexes and senses. You may also suffer slight memory loss, which, to a certain degree, is normal. In some cases, plaques and tangles form, which can damaging brain and nerve cells. These abnormalities predispose you to dementia.

What you can do

You can promote cognitive health by taking the following steps:

• Include physical activity in your daily routine. Physical activity increases blood flow to your whole body, including your brain. Studies suggest regular exercise is associated with better brain function and reduces stress and depression — factors that affect memory.
• Eat a healthy diet. A heart-healthy diet may benefit your brain. Focus on fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Choose low-fat protein sources, such as fish, lean meat, and skinless poultry. Too much alcohol can lead to confusion and memory loss.
• Stay mentally active. Staying mentally active may help sustain your memory and thinking skills. You can read, play word games, take up a new hobby, take classes, or learn to play an instrument.
• Be social. Social interaction helps ward off depression and stress, which can contribute to memory loss. You might volunteer at a local school or nonprofit, spend time with family and friends, or attend social events.
• Treat cardiovascular disease. Follow your doctor’s recommendations to manage cardiovascular risk factors — high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes — that may increase the risk of cognitive decline.
• Quit smoking. If you smoke, quitting smoking may help your cognitive health.

Your Digestive System

Your metabolism and digestion slow down with age because as we get older, the digestive tract becomes more rigid and does not contract normally to make food move through the different processing stations in the gastrointestinal tract.

This can lead to nausea, constipation, and stomach pain. Production of saliva and stomach acid also slows down. These physiological changes result in possible choking and food-borne illnesses as it becomes harder for your body to dispose of harmful bacteria.

What you can do

To prevent constipation:

• Eat a healthy diet. Make sure your diet includes high-fiber foods, such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Limit high-fat meats, dairy products, and sweets, which might cause constipation. Drink plenty of water and other fluids.
• Include physical activity in your daily routine. Regular physical activity can help prevent constipation.
• Don’t ignore the urge to have a bowel movement. Holding in a bowel movement for too long can cause constipation.

Your bladder and urinary tract

Your bladder may become less elastic as you age, resulting in the need to urinate more often. A weakening of bladder muscles and pelvic floor muscles may make it difficult for you to empty your bladder or cause you to lose bladder control (urinary incontinence). In men, an enlarged or inflamed prostate also can cause difficulty in emptying the bladder and incontinence.

Other factors that contribute to incontinence include being overweight, nerve damage from diabetes, certain medications, and caffeine or alcohol consumption.

What you can do

To promote bladder and urinary tract health:

• Go to the toilet regularly. Consider urinating on a regular schedule, such as every hour. Slowly extend the amount of time between your toilet trips.
• Maintain a healthy weight. If you’re overweight, lose excess pounds.
• Don’t smoke. If you smoke or use other tobacco products, ask your doctor to help you quit.
• Do Kegel exercises. To exercise your pelvic floor muscles (Kegel exercises), squeeze the muscles you would use to stop passing gas. Try it for three seconds at a time, and then relax for a count of three. Work up to doing the exercise 10 to 15 times in a row, at least three times a day.
• Avoid bladder irritants. Caffeine, acidic foods, alcohol, and carbonated beverages can make incontinence worse.
• Avoid constipation. Eat more fiber and take other steps to avoid constipation, which can worsen incontinence.

Your weight

How your body burns calories (metabolism) slows down as you age. If you decrease activities as you age, but continue to eat the same as usual, you’ll gain weight. To maintain a healthy weight, stay active, and eat healthily.

What you can do

To maintain a healthy weight:

• Include physical activity in your daily routine. Regular moderate physical activity can help you maintain a healthy weight.
• Eat a healthy diet. Choose vegetables, fruits, whole grains, high-fiber foods, and lean sources of protein, such as fish. Limit sugar and foods high in saturated fat.
• Watch your portion sizes. To cut calories, keep an eye on your portion sizes.

Your Eyes and Ears

With age, you might have difficulty focusing on objects that are close up. You might become more sensitive to glare and have trouble adapting to different levels of light. Aging also can affect your eye’s lens, causing clouded vision (cataracts).

Your hearing also might diminish. You might have difficulty hearing high frequencies or following a conversation in a crowded room.

What you can do

To promote eye and ear health:

• Schedule regular checkups. Follow your doctor’s advice about glasses, contact lenses, hearing aids, and other corrective devices.
• Take precautions. Wear sunglasses or a wide-brimmed hat when you’re outdoors, and use earplugs when you’re around loud machinery or other loud noises.

Your Teeth

Over the years, you typically become increasingly susceptible to cavities. This is because the enamel which protects our teeth from decay wears out. With old age comes a greater risk of gum disease.

The natural recession of the gums, which causes your teeth to look long, and shaky becomes prevalent. A lot of the time, you will have a dry mouth, which is a side effect of most of the medication for older adults.

What you can do

To promote oral health:

• Brush and floss. Brush your teeth twice a day and clean between your teeth — using regular dental floss or an interdental cleaner — once a day.
• Schedule regular checkups. Visit your dentist or dental hygienist for regular dental checkups.

Your Skin

When you get older, your skin begins to wrinkle and lose its elasticity. This is particularly evident with seniors who smoke. Also, the ravages of overexposure to the sun may result in instances of skin cancer.

What you can do

To promote healthy skin:

• Be gentle. Bathe or shower in warm — not hot — water. Use mild soap and moisturizer.
• Take precautions. When you’re outdoors, use sunscreen and wear protective clothing. Check your skin regularly and report changes to your doctor.
• Don’t smoke. If you smoke or use other tobacco products, ask your doctor to help you quit. Smoking contributes to skin damage, such as wrinkling.

Your Sex Life

Women experience physical changes after menopause, specifically vaginal dryness or lack of lubrication, while men experience erectile dysfunction. This and other emotional factors could result in a greatly reduced sex life, yet a healthy sex life is a factor contributing to your overall health.

What you can do

To promote your sexual health:

• Share your needs and concerns with your partner. You might find that physical intimacy without intercourse is right for you, or you may experiment with different sexual activities.
• Get regular exercise. Exercise improves the release of sexual hormones, cardiovascular health, flexibility, mood, and self-image — all factors that contribute to good sexual health.
• Talk to your doctor. Your doctor might offer specific treatment suggestions — such as estrogen cream for vaginal dryness or oral medication for erectile dysfunction in men.

Overall Actions Promoting Better Aging

Proper Diet

Reports from the World Health Organization (WHO) indicate that malnutrition is a significant challenge for people aged 65 and above.

However, it is under-diagnosed since its symptoms, which include lightheadedness, muscle weakness, and weight loss, can easily be interpreted as symptoms of another ailment. A proper diet is, therefore, very important in ensuring you live a happy and healthy life.

Here are some tips to guide you on your diet:

• Your diet should have lean protein and high fiber fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Fiber helps with your now slowed-down digestive system and keeps you feeling energetic.
• Take your supplements. While you may not be able to consume all the minerals your body needs through your diet, certain minerals such as calcium and vitamin D, which are essential for healthy bones, can be absorbed in the form of supplements. Seek advice from your health provider regarding supplements.
• Drink plenty of water, even when you do not feel thirsty. As you get older, you do not feel thirsty as often as you did before, but your body still needs water. If your urine is dark and cloudy, then that is a sign that you are dehydrated. Nutritionists recommend that you drink 3–5 glasses of water each day.
• Eat with a friend, a neighbor, or a family member. This will allow you to spend time with them and reconnect and also ensures you eat well, and you do not skip meals. It is also fun and faster to prepare the meal and clean up as a team.

Physical Activity

A study conducted on older sedentary Americans aged 70–89 researchers found that those who met to walk around a track twice a week (under supervision) were 28 percent less likely to be persistently disabled physically as opposed to their counterparts who did not walk. This study indicates that it is not too late to begin and also shows the importance of physical exercise.

The benefits of exercise include:

1. It helps relieve chronic pain brought about by conditions such as arthritis and pinched nerves, for instance, due to a herniated disc.
2. It helps keep your weight under control, which prevents obesity, diabetes, and some cardiovascular diseases.
3. Exercises like muscle training and resistance help reverse bone loss, which comes with age and gives you a strong back and shoulders.
4. You feel good after a workout, and your energy levels go up.
5. You sleep better after exercise.
6. Exercise boosts your immune system.
7. Your posture and balance are improved.
8. It keeps you mentally strong and alert.
9. It lowers your blood pressure.

Here are a few tips for you:

1. Consult your health provider before signing up for an exercise program.
2. Start slowly and then increase your pace, frequency as you move along.
3. Identify an exercise that you find interesting; this way, you look forward to doing it. This could be swimming, golf, walking a pet, or yoga.
4. Exercise with a friend so that you motivate each other or join a class.

Exercises for Your Brain

With old age come forgetfulness and other mental challenges. You can stimulate your mind by:

1. Learning a new instrument, game, or language.
2. Adding variations in your usual activities (for instance, if you like to cook food on the stovetop, you can bake now and then); you can use different routes to get to say the supermarket or the golf club.
3. Playing word games or crossword puzzles and advancing to harder ones as you move along so as not to challenge yourself.

Preventive Measures

It is important to see your physician often and go for screening and testing as recommended. These include:

1. Checking your blood pressure.
2. Screening for colorectal cancer.
3. Pelvic exam.
4. Screening for diabetes.
5. Eye test.
6. Hearing test.
7. Mammogram.
8. Screening for prostate cancer (for men).
9. Dental exam.

It is also recommended you get your vaccination for tetanus, flu, and pneumonia.

Protective measures you can take at home include:

1. Check for loose wiring or frayed carpets that would cause a fall.
2. Ensure your electrical and gas appliances are up to date.
3. Ensure proper lighting in all your rooms.
4. Remove furniture or things that can obstruct you and cause a fall.

Have A Positive Outlook

Some of the ways to deal with the painful emotional challenges that come with old age are:

1. Join a support group. Interacting with individuals who have gone through your experience helps you feel less alone. Facing your issues and talking about issues and facing them is also a powerful way to work through them.
2. Spend time with at least one person a day. This could be a neighbor or a family friend. Physical interactions are much more enriching than a text, and this helps ward off feelings of loneliness and depression.
3. Visit a museum, go to a concert or a park you now have time to do all the fun stuff you could not do when you were busier at work.
4. Travel to a place you have always wanted to go to. It doesn’t have to be expensive it could be a national park in your town that you always wanted to visit
5. Accept the changes that have happened instead of trying to resist them. Getting old and losing loved ones is inevitable – it happens to everyone. Once you accept and enjoy what you have, you will be free to live a happier life.
6. Indulge in a new hobby like golf, biking, or baking or pay attention to an old one.
7. Learn a new language, a sport, or a musical instrument.
8. Meditate and take care of your spiritual needs—this will lead to a more relaxed life.
9. Become a volunteer. This is a great way to meet people who share the same interests as you do, also helping others with their problems enables you to forget your own and be grateful for your life.
10. Write a memoir. You have the time, why don’t you do it? Reflect on the lessons, struggles, and victories of your life and share it with the world. Many people will learn from it.
11. Your emotional well-being has a profound effect on your overall health. Do what you can to:

•  remove any lingering toxicity in your life, Releasing suppressed emotions
• Increase positive emotions/outlook
• Embrace social support
• Deepen your spiritual connection
• Have meaning in your life that aids in your having a strong will to liH