Health

Who is old? For my 15 years old son, my 40 years old sister is pretty old. On the contrary, for my 83 years old mother, a 40 year old person is in the prime of life. So, what does it mean to be old? I thought being old is a stage of mind, it is when our body and our mind decline in quality of life, no when I add 1 number to my age. It is true that age usually comes with more vulnerability to have diseases that could affect the quality of our life. However, it is also true that we have tools to make this process less harmful and improve our chances of aging with a healthy body and mind. There are some habits to take in count: healthy food, keeping an active physical life, and keeping an open mind in our relationships with others.

We cannot deny the fact that every day we get older, and time means changes in our body for every stage of our life. So, we must be aware of what kind of nutrients and calories our body needs based on age. For example, if you are 40+ you need fewer calories than a person in their 20 or 30, since older people have less muscle mass to carry up. Moreover, older people need to consume more protein rich in nutrients to compensate for the loss of vitamin D, B12 and Calcium. May be useful to consult your nutritionist to help you to find the adequate diet that fits your own profile.

Sometimes aging makes people less active, the ordinary responsibility of an adult life takes people to a sedentary lifestyle, giving less oxygen to their bodies and accelerating the ageing process. A healthy body and mind need a quote of exercise. For instance, a study made in a group of cyclists aged 55-79 revealed that those people can do everyday tasks very easily and efficiently because they keep almost all parts of their body with a good performance. It is important to point out that this process should initiate at least in ours 25 to 35, earlier the better.

The last factor is related to our social life. Healthy relationships bring life balance, decrease stress, and give purpose to people's lives. In this Covid time, this factor has represented a big challenge. However, the magic of the technology has helped to continue communicating with others and stretch the physical distance with our loved ones.

Summarizing, getting older is a natural process that we cannot stop. However, it can be pleasant and relaxing by maintaining our body and mind in good performance. For that purpose, we need to cultivate, since our young ages, good habits for eating, exercising and socializing.