If we want to give ourselves the best chance of slowing the ageing process and enjoying good health in our later years, we need to take responsibility for our own health. We can’t sub-contract this job to our partner, our doctor or the government.
Too many of us don’t give enough thought to exercising, diet and our general lifestyle and expect our doctor to “cure” us from any illness by proscribing medication, drugs or even surgery. The excuse is often that we are “getting older” and therefore illness is to be expected and there’s not much we can do about it. Unfortunately it’s this attitude that leads to illness and frailty and prevents us from making the most of the additional 20 – 30 years that most Australians now have after we leave full time work.
The reality is that most of us don’t have to be sick and frail in our 60s and 70s. Sure there’s bad luck, serious accidents and unexpected illnesses that can spoil our best laid plans. However there’s an abundance of evidence that if we adopt the strategy that “prevention is better than cure” and organise ourselves to enjoy a healthy lifestyle with regular exercise, a good diet and a positive, optimistic attitude, our chances of avoiding many of the illnesses associated with ageing, are much better.
Some actions we can take to improve our health and wellbeing are –
- Better manage stress through effective time management, meditation and infusing life with creativity, humour and fun.
- Get in the habit of exercising regularly.
- Adopt a healthy diet and avoid smoking.
- Develop good relationships with those people who are important to us.
- Be engaged with life, take an active interest in our community and help others.
This extract is based on an article in our new book titled “How to stay Healthy, Active and Sharp in Retirement. This book offers information and advice on a wide range of physical and mental health issues, some of which most people will encounter in their 50s, 60s and 70s