I recently participated in the 100 km OxfamTrail walk and the one thing that I was overwhelmed about is the number of senior citizens who were participating in this challenge. It’s nice to see senior people fitter than many youngsters. One fine example was that of Milind Soman’s mother who at 76 years old looked fit and completed the 100 km trail walk in 40 hours along with her daughters. That was commendable.

Growing old is great but along with that maintaining your health is equally important. At some point in our life many of us have faced and dealt with an old parent’s illness. And therefore I feel that staying healthy as a senior citizen is very important.

Your mental and physical health plays a crucial role in the latter years of your life. Staying healthy means eating nutritious foods, exercising, and getting regular medical check-ups. Prevention and early detection are the best defense against illness and disease.

As people get older, physiological changes occur in their body as a natural part of aging.Due to aging mostly all organs are affected and some diseases and co morbid conditions become more prominent in the elderly.

Psychological issues can also play a role in physical and mental health of older adults. At senior stage a balanced diet and regular exercise are strongly linked to better health outcomes. Regular medical checkup and important preventive measures at home help to improve the safety and health of seniors.

As health needs change with age, one thing remains the same: healthy living (healthy lifestyle), one of the best way to avoid disease (related to Skin, Bones, joints, and muscles, mobility and balance, body shape, face, teeth and gums, Hair and nail, memory, immunity, hearing, vision and sleep).

 Living a longer, healthier life can be made easier with these simple steps.

Healthy Eating Habits: Always try to have natural foods, avoid the artificial source and opt for fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fiber-rich foods—bean, spinach, and romaine lettuce, for example—lean cuts of meat, fresh fish, and poultry instead. Processed food usually filled with unhealthy things like high-fructose corn syrup that leads to overconsumption. Secondly, contains lot of artificial Ingredients. Most processed foods are Low in Nutrients.

It requires less energy and time to digest processed foods. Processed foods contain MSG (Monosodium glutamate – to enhance flavor), it also contains lots of sodium and typically all the wrong heart-clogging oils. Therefore it is always good to go with natural food available, if possible go with homemade food.

Activities:Physical activity is vital for developing the strong bones and muscles. This would help in avoiding falls or accidental injuries. Exercise is add on as part of overall healthy lifestyle and to avoid obesity, which is the root cause of other diseases. So if you have not started your activity, please get and include some physical activities into your routine before it gets too late.

Stop Smoking, tobacco:Dump the cigarette/tobacco habit before this dumps you. And stay away from those who do smoke, as second-hand smoking is more dangerous than direct smoking.

Meditation: I personally believe in meditation, as it really help to avoid stress because like obesity – stress is also a main cause of 70% diseases. So Meditation really helps you in terms of Psychological&Physiological. To get more information about Meditation you can also check my blog at:

https://goqii.com/blog/myths-and-health-benefits-of-meditation/

So what are you waiting for get up and change your lifestyle from sedentary to Active and live healthy long life.