Live longer and better

1. Which of these is most likely to improve your memory after age 50?

( a) Solving crossword or Sudoku puzzles ( b) Going on regular walks ( c) Taking ginkgo biloba supplements

Answer: (b). Human brains typically shrink with age, impairing memory (and explaining why your car keys keep disappearing). But a revelatory study published in October found that physically active older people experienced less brain shrinkage than sedentary seniors, even those who engaged in “mentally stimulating” activities like puzzles.


2. What’s the best treatment for creaky, arthritic knees?

( a) Sitting down ( b) Taking glucosamine supplements ( c) Doing tai chi ( d) Taking shark cartilage pills

Answer: (c). In controlled experiments, glucosamine and shark cartilage have failed to reliably relieve knee pain, but a 2011 review of multiple studies of tai chi—that famously flowing series of stretches and poses—concluded that it is generally effective at controlling pain and improving physical function.


3. Which of these two habits could shave the most time off your life?

( a) Watching TV ( b) Smoking

Answer: (a). According to a surprising new analysis of health records published in October, every hour that an adult over 25 spends sitting and watching television can cut about 22 minutes from his or her life span; smoking a cigarette aan reduces life span by about 11 minutes. The reason, according to the scientists who conducted the study, is that hours of sitting lead to an increased risk of diabetes and heart disease and so may have an even greater impact on longevity than smoking.

4. True or false: If you’re middle aged and have spent the past 20 years smoking, avoiding exercise, ears exercise, or otherwise being unhealthy, it’s too late to change now.

Answer: False.

Recent research shows that people who quit smoking by age 40 gained nearly 10 years of life over those who continued to puff. And a 2012 study by researchers at the Cooper Institute in Dallas concluded that people who started to exercise in middle age—even if they only walked a few times a week—were healthier further into old age than people who never started exercising.


5. True or false: To feel younger, just open your window blinds.

Answer: True.

Looking out a window onto natural, outdoorsy scenes may reduce blood pressure and other markers of stress, several new studies show. More remarkably, in a 2009 experiment reported in the Lancet, older people in Hong Kong who lived near open, green spaces had longer telomeres, a portion of the DNA strand that often shortens and frays with age. In effect, they had younger cells.

6. As you age, volunteering can:

(a) Decrease depression ( b) Improve your sex life ( c) Both of the above

Answer: (c). It’s well established that middle-aged and older people who spend time volunteering are less prone to depression, but it was a pleasant surprise when University of Pittsburgh researchers found that a sense of “higher purpose” in life, often achieved through volunteering, led women to report more enjoyable sex lives.


7. If you’re physically active and sociable, you can expect to add how many years to your life span?

( a) 0.8 ( b) 1.5 ( c) 3.6 (d) 5.4

Answer: (d). According to a major 2012 study in the British Medical people 75 or older who “swam, walked, or did gymnastics” (meaning, in Brit speak, they attended stretching and toning classes) and who had a “rich or moderate social network” lived more than five years longer than people who were isolated and sedentary. Even “the oldest old,” past age 85, could expect an extra four years of life if they remained active

8. If you’re a woman 40 or older and worried about improving bone health or avoiding falls, you might want to take up:

 

(a) Running (b) Soccer (c) A cane

Answer: (b) scientists in Denmark recently had one group of sedentary adult women join a soccer league and another group start running for 14 weeks. Afterward, the soccer players had gained more bone mass in their legs, and had better leg muscle strength and balance, than the runners. (Plus, their kids were undoubtedly impressed.)

9. What’s the best way to motivate yourself to be physically active after age 40?

( a) Join a gym ( b) Adopt a dog ( c) Cut out a photo of first lady Michelle Obama’s biceps ( d) Hire a personal trainer

 

Answer: (b). In a recent Canadian study of people up to age 80, dog owners were found to walk about 300 minutes per week, almost twice as many as those without a canine. The dog owners were also significantly more likely to follow through on an “intention” to walk, because who could say no to that face?

10. Finally, as inspiration: In 2011, a runner at the Toronto Marathon became the oldest person ever to finish a race of that distance. He was:

( a) 72 ( b) 86 ( c) 91 ( d) 100

Answer: (d). Fauja Singh, a durable centenarian, set a world record by crossing the finish line in 8 hours, 25 minutes, and 16 seconds. Nine younger whippersnappers finished after him.

 

 Also see our blog post:  More than dental care we believe in your overall health

Reference: Grand Rapids Press Parade by Gretchen Reynolds