HEALTHY SENIORS

IS SALT BAD FOR YOU? MAYBE NOT!

Hi Folks,

I once had a son-in-law that was a nut when it came to salt. I think he considered it a poison. When he and family came over for dinner my daughter tasted all his food to be sure her mother hadn’t put too much salt in it. Bet you think that didn’t cause some friction.

Over the years I have had friends that limited their intake of salt because of high blood pressure problems.  It may have helped, it may not have – but their doctors advised them to lay off salt so they did. Now, over the past few months I have read some interesting articles suggesting that limiting salt may do a person more harm than good.  Hmm

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You vs. flu: 5 things you may not know

Hi Folks,

Have you had your flu shot this year? I’m surprised at the number of seniors I ask that have not gotten theirs. Most say they have just put it off, some say they don’t get flu shots and a few say the shots give them the flu. Whatever! The fact remains that the flu is deadly to seniors – no matter how healthy and fit we are. So why take a chance? A flu shot is no guarantee that you won’t get the flu but it does improve your chances of not catching it. 

Stay Well,
Woody 

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SENIOR, FOR HEALTHY LIVING YOU MUST KEEP MOVING.

Hi Folks,

Well, we just returned home from senior exercise (one hour sessions, three days a week). What a great bunch of seniors to exercise with, fellowship with and share with.

Today during our water break I mentioned how easy it would have been to stay home and take it easy. I took a fall on one of my exploring expeditions recently and I’m still sore. My comment turned the conversation to how we must keep pushing ourselves to stay active so that we can stay healthy.

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NEW FLU VACCINE FOR SENIORS

Hi folks,

Have you gotten your flu shot this fall? Flu season is here you know and the flu can be really, really hard on us seniors.

Surprisingly, every year I hear seniors say they forgot to get their flu shot or that they don’t trust them or make some other excuse for taking a chance on catching this life threatening illness.   

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SENIOR – FOOT CARE IS VITAL TO YOUR HEALTH

Hi Folks,

Have you had your daily walk(s) today? If not are you planning one?

Seniors are becoming more and more aware of how important walking is to their good health but it’s hard to get excited about taking a walk when your feet are hurting. According to the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) impairment of the lower extremities is a leading cause of inactivity in older people.

So what can we do? Well, it isn’t too late to start taking good care of our feet. Surprisingly our feet are pretty forgiving, even after all those years of neglect, if we begin taking good care of them.

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SENIOR: SHOPPING IS GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH

Hi Folks,

I read in the September 18, 2011 issue of Bottom Line Secrets (http://www.bottomlinesecrets.com/el/bls_signup.html) that shopping is good for your health. As I am one of those folks not particularly fond of shopping I read the short little article with some skepticism.

It seems that researcher, Yu-Hung Chang, PhD of the Institute of Population Health Sciences in Taiwan did a study of 1800 adults 65 years old and older about their shopping habits. He found that those who shopped every day had a 27% lower risk of death than those who shopped less often. And (you’re not going to believe this) men benefited from daily shopping more than women, 28% compared with women 23%.

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Want to lose weight? A slow walk is the way to go

Hi Folks,

Years ago when people started talking about walking for exercise (this was in the 70s when you couldn’t even buy “walking shoes”) – most old timers just snickered because walking was something they had done all their lives to get from one place to another and for pleasant little relaxing strolls.

Now, 35 or so years later, walking is one of the most popular exercises going. My office window looks out over a nice sidewalk at the edge of my lawn and it has walkers on it from early morning until late evening.

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A NEW WAY FOR SENIORS TO STAY FIT

Hi Folks,

Please don’t click off this article. Read it through and then take some time to think it through. This new fun way for seniors to stay fit may be just the thing you have been looking for as a way for having some great family time, stay fit and encourage your kids and grand-kids to enjoy keeping in shape.

Many seniors are more physically fit than their grown children and even their grandchildren so this is a great opportunity to encourage them to get fit while having fun. And your grand-kids will love teaching you about video games. What have you got to lose?

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SENIOR NUTRITION: EATING WELL AND AGING WELL

Hi Folks,

Think healthy eating is all about dieting and sacrifice? Think again. Eating well is a lifestyle that embraces colorful food, creativity in the kitchen, and eating with friends.

For seniors, the benefits of healthy eating include increased mental acuteness, resistance to illness and disease, higher energy levels, a more  robust immune system, faster recuperation times, and better management of chronic health problems. As we age, eating well can also be the key to a positive outlook and staying emotionally balanced.

The above is an excerpt from a wonderful, informative article that I discovered in an article published by HELPGUIDE.org, entitled Senior Nutrition – The joy of eating well and aging well.

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Americans 65 and Older Score Highest in Well-Being Survey

Good News Folks,

Older Americans lead all age groups in well-being according to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index is the first and largest survey of its kind, with 1000 calls made each day, seven days a week, giving a daily measure of people’s well-being at the close of every day.

Well-Being is defined by Dictionary.com as:  a good or satisfactory condition of existence; a state characterized by health, happiness, and prosperity.

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