If Hearts Could Talk

CONTROLLING AGING
10 WAYS TO HELP RETAIN YOUTH AND PROLONG THE ONSET OF AGING
1. MUSCLE MASS- Americans tend to lose 6.6 pounds of lean body mass each year with the rate accelerating after 45.
CONTROL FACTOR: EXERCISE AND PROPER NUTRITION
2. STRENGTH- The average person loses 30 percent of his muscles and or nerves between age 20 and 70. Strength and size of remaining cells can be increased.
CONTROL FACTOR: RESISTANCE TRAINING
3. CALORIES- At age 70 a person needs 500 fewer calories per day to maintain body weight.
CONTROL FACTOR: REDUCE CALORIC INTAKE

4. BODY FAT- Fact: One in three Americans are clinically obese. The average 65-year old woman’s body is 43 percent fat compared to 25 percent at age 25.
CONTROL FACTOR: EXERCISE AND PROPER NUTRITION

5. BLOOD PRESSURE- Most Americans show an increase in blood pressure with age.
CONTROL FACTOR: EXERCISE AND PROPER NUTRITION

6. DIABETES- Some diabetes cases are caused by an increase in body fat and loss of muscle mass. “The couch potato!”
CONTROL FACTOR: EXERCISE AND PROPER NUTRITION

7. CHOLESTEROL- Bad cholesterol leads to heart disease, good cholesterol helps protect against it.
CONTROL FACTOR: EXERCISE AND PROPER NUTRTION

8. TEMPERATURE- The body’s ability to regulate temperature declines with age. “It’s ok to sweat!”
CONTROL FACTOR: EXERCISE AND PROPER NUTRITION

9. BONE DENSITY- Fact: One million fractures per year are due to falls in women with osteoporosis. Bones lose mineral content and become weaker with age.
CONTROL FACTOR- EXERCISE AND PROPER CALCIUM INTAKE

10. AEROBIC CAPACITY- The body’s efficient use of oxygen declines by 30 – 40 percent by age 65.
CONTROL FACTOR: AEROBIC EXERCISE

Adapated from Biomarkers by William Evans