AGEING is an interesting phenomenon, we are all aware of what ageing brings to us – aches, pains, fading memory, comb-overs and a newfound interest in Viagra. Most of us tend to ignore the fact that the time torpedoes are full steam ahead of us and will, in the end, always hit their target.
My point is will: you be able to dance your age or will you drag it?
Research has shown that life expectancies are rising steadily with women in Europe living to an average age of 80 and men 75. Experts predict that soon reaching 100 will be the norm.
Here are some serious tips on how to make it to a full century:
Win an award
In the Annals of Internal Medicine, a study found that Oscar winners live nearly four years longer than actors who were never nominated, or were nominated but didn’t win.
This was put down to the health boosting effects of major achievements. So, winning a golf match, coming first in a talent show, having a poem published or running a marathon all give the same boost to the system – so get competitive.
Join a bingo club
Studies have shown that there is no discernible difference in the survival rate between people over 65 who exercised and those who opted for more social activities such as playing bingo or cooking. Accordingly it was decided that the key to good health is doing what you enjoy and importantly, always feeling positive about yourself.
Have more sex
In a long term study a consultant cardiologist at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital found that couples with a healthy sex life well into their sixties and seventies can look forward to living an extra seven years than those who are celibate because sex reduces stress and leads to happiness, fulfilment and better sleep.
Get a pet
Families who own a dog or a cat are less stressed and visit their doctors less often than non-pet owners. Apparently, pets make you feel more optimistic and relaxed which lowers your blood pressure, dogs give the best results but even a humble goldfish can do the trick.
Eat chocolate
The Harvard School of Public Health found people who eat a moderate amount of chocolate live longer than those who deny themselves sweets. Chocolate contains chemicals called phenols, which are thought to protect against heart disease and cancer. These fight harmful free radicals, substances in the body that damage cells and cause disease. Cocoa may also prevent bad (LDL) cholesterol from forming and so boost the immune system.
Keep laughing
An American cardiologist describes a good laugh as akin to a mini workout. One to two hundred laughs is equivalent to ten minutes jogging or rowing. Research shows that laughter also reduces stress and boosts the body’s natural defence cells and antibodies.
Get up earlier
Sleeping more than 8 hours a night may reduce your life expectancy. In a study of more than one million people aged between 20 -102 those who slept for six or seven hours lived significantly longer than people who snoozed on for more than eight hours or who slept less than four hours.
Make peace with your mum
Here, the Harvard medical school scientists followed participants for 35 years and then ranked the type of relationship they had with their mothers. They found that those who did not have a close relationship with their mother developed a serious disease such as high blood pressure, alcoholism or heart disease by midlife, compared to those who had a good relationship and went on to have a longer life span.
So don’t just wear a hat because its nice to have a warm head, always pick up Good Housekeeping magazine before Cosmopolitan and stop wishing that people on TV would annunciate more clearly. Stop eating dinner at 5.30pm and don’t choose holiday destinations with ‘the quiet life’ in mind. If your idea of safe sex is not falling out of bed then you have well and truly reached middle age and unless you change your ways, the chances of making it to one hundred years are slim.
