| HEATHY AGING Aging is a continuous process that begins at birth and continues throughout all stages of life including childhood, puberty, young adulthood, middle and late ages. In this article, we divide aging into two groups: healthy and unhealthy aging. Healthy aging is not accompanied by disease and disability while unhealthy aging is associated with the common complex of diseases and impairments. People who age healthy do not experience many of the unwanted features of aging, such as extensive tooth loss. When we get older our body changes in many noticeable ways. Often, the first signs involve the musculoskeletal system and then sensory organs. One day, we may find that we can no long focus easily on close objects or loss the ability to hear the highest pitches. Some of us by late age may find that their favorite pants do not fit them anymore, as their body fat increases a lot at their abdominal region. Our skin also becomes thinner and wrinkled. Our internal functions also decline with age. Luckily, most functions remain adequate throughout life. Disease, rather than healthy aging, usually accounts for function loss in old age. S. Jay Olshansky, PhD at University of Illinois at Chicago said,"What we should be pursuing is way to slow down the biological process of aging rather than stopping it...If we succeeded in delaying aging the bonus would likely be an extension of life." in a conference. [SOURCE The Hype vs the Hope of Antiaging Research. By Jennifer Warner, WebMD Medical News, June 23, 2004.] HOME MAN at 40 Study shows that the brain function starts to slow around age 40. Dr. Bruce Yankner from Harvard Medical School has already identified the genes which play the key roles. Because of the wide differences in gene activity among people, individuals may approach a stage of "old age" at different rates. Extracted from The Brain May Start to Age at 40 Years, Reuters, June 10, 2004. FACTORS HIT LIFE EXPECTANCY Obesity, a major risk factor for diabetes, affects 300 million people in the world and about 194 million people suffer from diabetes. By 2005, the number of obese people may soar to 333 million. Professor Claude Bouchard, International Society for the Study of Obesity, suspected that within a short period of time we would see a reduction in life expectancy because of the twin epidemics (obesity and diabetes). Extracted from Obesity/Diabetes Could Hit Life Expectancy-Experts, by Patricia Reaney, Reuters, May 28 2004. ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION McKay D. reviewed of available empirical evidence and suggested arginine, yohimbine, ginseng, maca and ginkgo biloba may helpful erectile dysfunction. And, their therapeutic action may be related to penile endothelial L-arginine-nitric oxide activity. Reference Nutrients and botanicals for erectile dysfunction: examining the evidence. Mckay D. Thorne Research, ID, Altern Med Rev. 2004 Mar; 9(1):4-16. Why WALKING? Why walking? Walking is an exercise which has a low injury rate. You can walk at a pace as you like. Walking improves circulation and stretching decreases the buildup of lactic acid. Extracted from: Health Tip: Seniors Who Walk for Exercise, HealthDay, June 8, 2004. There is another reason for walking-a prevention measure against erectile dysfunction. Researchers studied some 31,000 men between ages 55 to 90 and concluded that men who regularly exercised typically had a 10-year delay in erectile dysfunction. Sedentary men may be able to reduce their risk of erectile dysfunction by performing exercise at a level of at least 200 calories a day, which corresponds to walking briskly for two miles. Source Daily 2-Mile Walk May Prevent Impotence, by Sid Kirchheimer, WebMD Medical News, June 22, 2004 |
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