As we age, we want to live longer than previous generations, and we also want to live a healthy life into old age. How can we do that? Eating a balanced diet, drinking less alcohol, exercising, and enhancing human interaction are all proper ways to live a long and healthy life. Although people’s functions in all aspects are declining as they age, if we have a healthy body, we can still enjoy life and have a relaxed and happy old age.
Health includes physical health and mental health, and these two kinds of health are accompanied by each other. Mental health can promote physical health. The mind, like the body, needs to maintain normal blood pressure, a low cholesterol diet, proper weight and physical exercise. There are many healthy lifestyles that can keep us healthy and free from disease. At the same time, there are more ways we can take to help us stay mentally healthy.
What psychological changes occur as we grow older? What kinds of changes are normal?
As we age, certain physical and psychological changes are predictable. For example, our eyesight and hearing may not be as good as they were in our 20s, and we may not be able to remember certain things or details of recent events as quickly and well as we did in our 30s. In fact, from the age of 30, the weight of our brain, neural networks, and cerebral blood flow levels begin to decline, but the brain can self-regulate to maintain the body’s balance.
As we age, certain mental changes are inevitable, but most abilities remain the same. Our intelligence, our ability to adapt to life changes remains. We can still learn new things despite getting older, we just need more time to learn them. Our emotional and intellectual levels can still grow slowly.
What do we have to do to maintain our mental health?
Many measures can promote mental health. Some measures can promote both our physical health and our mental health. For example, physical exercise, a low-cholesterol diet, and a low-salt diet can help lower blood cholesterol levels and control blood pressure, and these measures can maintain mental health by improving the oxygen supply to the brain. Activities that stimulate the brain, such as crossword puzzles, reading, writing, and learning new things, help keep the brain functioning healthily. Enhancing interpersonal relationships is also an important way to maintain mental health.
Here are some ways to keep us mentally healthy and away from mental illness.
1. Exercise the body. Exercise has many benefits. Active physical exercise helps prevent osteoporosis, maintain body balance, and keep away from heart disease, stroke, nasty tumors and other diseases. Physical diseases may cause mental illness. For example, patients with diabetes, malignant tumors, and heart disease are often accompanied by depression.
The benefits of regular exercise: ① improve memory; ② promote mental health; ③ get pleasure from exercise and possibly reduce depression symptoms; ④ make us more energetic.
Walking, running, swimming, dancing and other physical exercises help slow the heart rate and lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Physical activity enhances the heart beat, which increases blood flow to the brain, making us more responsive and limber.
If you plan to start a physical activity that you have not tried before, it is recommended to talk to your doctor first in order to choose a more suitable exercise for your physical condition. Take proper precautions when you first start exercising and don’t be in a hurry. Remember, regular physical activity does not mean a lot of exercise.
2. Control blood pressure. High blood pressure is closely related to the onset of dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease. High blood pressure causes blood vessel damage and increases the risk of stroke, renal insufficiency, heart disease, cardiac arrest and other diseases. about 2/3 of people over 65 years old have hypertension with blood pressure of 140/90mmHg or even higher. People with blood pressure in the range of 120/80-139/89 mmHg are considered to be in pre-hypertension, and although their blood pressure has not yet reached the diagnostic criteria for hypertension, they are likely to develop hypertensive disease later. Measures such as weight control, smoking cessation, regular exercise, healthy diet, low salt diet, less alcohol and less coffee can be used to control blood pressure.
3. Keep plasma cholesterol at low levels. Hypercholesterolemia is a risk factor for heart disease and dementia. The higher the plasma cholesterol level, the greater the likelihood of developing these diseases. Excessive cholesterol in the blood can enter the walls of blood vessels, causing them to harden and narrow, thus reducing the speed of blood flow or even blocking it from passing through. Normally, plasma cholesterol levels are below 200 mg/dL, 200-239 mg/dL is the borderline state level, and above 240 mg/dL is considered hypercholesterolemia. Age, gender, genetics and other factors can affect plasma cholesterol levels. After menopause in women, cholesterol levels begin to rise with age. A healthy diet, weight control, and physical exercise can all help improve plasma cholesterol levels.
4. Eat more vegetables. Vegetables can provide nutrients to keep the brain healthy and keep us healthy and strong. We can start by eating more of a variety of fruits, vegetables, cereals, and nonfat dairy products to find healthy foods that you like and that also meet your body’s needs.
Dietary recommendations to promote brain health.
①Folic acid: Folic acid is an essential component for maintaining normal cell function, and it helps prevent megaloblastic anemia and DNA changes. Foods rich in folic acid include: fortified breakfast cereals, dark green leafy vegetables, asparagus, strawberries, beans, and beef liver.
②Vitamin E and vitamin C: Vitamin E and vitamin C are important antioxidants in food that help prevent cell damage and reduce the risk of malignancy and heart disease.
For adults, the recommended daily intake of vitamin E from food is 15 mg. foods rich in vitamin E include nuts such as almonds, vegetable oils, seeds, malt, spinach, dark green leafy vegetables, etc. The recommended daily intake of vitamin C is 75mg for adult women and 90mg for men. foods rich in vitamin C include oranges, grapes, asparagus, kale, broccoli, peppers, cabbage, cauliflower, tomatoes, spinach, etc.
5, do not abuse drugs. It is important to use medication according to the doctor’s guidance. Pay attention to the drug use precautions, because some drugs can not drink alcohol during the medication, can not be used in combination with other drugs. Over-the-counter drugs or herbal medicines should also pay attention to the precautions for their use.
6, moderate drinking. If you are not in the habit of drinking alcohol, don’t start drinking alcohol. If you are over 65 years old and have the habit of drinking alcohol, but do not abuse alcohol, then you should control yourself to drink less than 1 time a day, and each drink should not exceed 300ml of beer, or 35ml of white wine or 150ml of wine.
7, quit smoking. If you have the habit of smoking, take immediate action to quit smoking, do not wait until after the disease to consider quitting smoking. Smoking can significantly increase the risk of stroke, lung cancer or other tumors, cause chronic bronchitis, emphysema, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cardiac arrest and peripheral vascular disease. According to data from the American Lung Association, once an older person with a smoking habit stops smoking, his circulatory function improves rapidly compared to when he was smoking, while his lungs begin to move in a better direction. The increased risk of heart disease due to smoking can be reduced by half after 1 year of quitting. In addition, the risk of stroke, lung disease, and tumors will also be reduced.
8. Stabilize weight at a certain level. Relative to normal weight people, overweight or obese people are more likely to suffer from hypertension, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, heart disease, stroke, arthritis-related disability, tumors and other diseases. Also, obese people are at risk of memory loss and immune system decline. Seniors should find out their attainment weight by consulting with a health facility and then control their weight to reach their goal weight. Whether you are overweight or not, a healthy diet and physical exercise can promote physical and mental health.
9. Keep your teeth healthy by cleaning them and having regular dental checkups. Recent studies suggest that chronic inflammation caused by gum disease can cause a range of health problems, including Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease and more. Therefore, keeping your teeth healthy not only allows you to keep a bright smile and be able to eat your favorite foods, but also keeps you safe from disease.
10. Maintain mental health. Just as we work out to keep our organism in order, exercise keeps our minds sharp. Knives do not sharpen to rust, people do not study to fall behind. Older people should often participate in activities that stimulate the brain to function. This way, as we get older, we can still keep our minds agile. At the same time, we can make new connections to billions of cells in our brains by learning new things, which can help reduce the risk of dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease. So, let’s take action and get our heads moving every day. Through rational and self-challenging activities, such as solving brain-bending problems, learning some new musical instruments, reading challenging books, playing chess, playing cards, attending lectures, writing stories or participating in performances, we can stimulate brain function and keep our minds agile.
11. Relieve stress. Too much stress can make us physically tired, blood pressure increases, and the risk of heart disease increases. Too much stress can also affect our thinking, emotions and memory function. When stressed, the body will secrete certain hormones, these hormones may cause shrinkage of the brain, affecting memory and learning. At the same time, stress can also lead to depression and anxiety attacks.
How should we deal with various kinds of stress?
①It is important to identify the cause of stress and then find a solution. For example, having a traffic jam can make you feel pressured, so you can avoid the traffic rush by adjusting the time or route to leave home. If buying gifts and preparing for various parties during the holidays makes you feel overwhelmed, then simplify the parties and focus on the part you want to do the most, such as family and friends’ parties.
② If you feel stressed, talk about it. Talking to a friend or psychotherapist about your stress or writing it down in the form of a diary can help you see things differently and thus relieve stress.
③ Learn to relax yourself. You can relieve stress by taking a walk, playing golf, tennis, meditation, etc.
④ Get yourself active. Most physical exercise helps to release and relieve stress.
⑤ Give yourself a break. If you are currently stressed for a long time, then give yourself a little vacation first, even if it’s for 20 minutes or a few days, to relax and enjoy things that make you feel good.
12. Protect your brain from trauma. A history of head trauma or loss of consciousness can affect the healthy functioning of the brain. According to the American Trauma Association, falls are the leading cause of head trauma in older adults. You can protect your head from trauma by taking the following steps: 1) Improve your balance by exercising regularly to avoid falls. Remove obstacles from the floor of your home and make sure your home is well lit. ③Wear your seat belt when driving. ④Wear a helmet when riding a bicycle. ⑤ Wear comfortable shoes when walking or running, and do it in a well-lit place.
13.Strengthen interpersonal interaction. Older people who participate in group activities show symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease later than those who lack social interaction. Therefore, we should strengthen interpersonal communication, actively participate in reading societies, join volunteer activities or visit with friends and family frequently.
14. Look at problems positively. An optimistic and positive attitude contributes to physical and mental health. Focus on the good side of life, focus on those people and things that make you feel happy and joyful.
How can we improve our memory.
① First of all, don’t expect to remember everything. In this busy society, our brains are largely overloaded with information. If necessary, we can use a notebook, etc. to write down the things we want to remember. For example, write down information about your trips to meetings, make a list of chores, and carry a notebook with you. ②Help memory by making it a habit. For example, take your medication at the same time every day, and put your keys in the same place every time. ③Remember certain things by relating them through stories. ④Improve memory by improving concentration. When learning something new, try to minimize outside distractions, such as turning off the TV and focusing on learning in a quiet room. The more time you spend learning new things, the better you will learn and remember them. Give yourself plenty of time to learn and don’t be in a hurry, but be patient.
As I get older, what kinds of things occur that indicate possible illness?
Older people are prone to forgetfulness, but it does not occur on a regular, continuous basis. As we get older, we may face more parting events, such as children leaving the country or the death of a close friend or relative, that can cause us to feel sad. It is not normal to have prolonged periods of grief.
If you have the following symptoms: sad experience for more than 2 weeks; inexplicable crying; no longer interested in activities you usually like; feel no energy, easily fatigued; easily provoked, easily quarrel with others; appetite, weight change; sleep change: insomnia or too much sleep; feel useless, feel helpless, inappropriate self-blame, feel no hope for the future; unable to concentrate on thinking, difficulty in making decisions These symptoms may be the result of the aging process. These symptoms may be abnormal manifestations of the aging process and may indicate certain diseases. In this case, medical attention should be sought.