Sometimes, we can feel that life is presenting more problems as the years go by. While this may be the viewpoint of someone of a pessimistic mindset, you can’t argue against the fact that as we age, there are more and more things that creep up on us.
As we age, there is more of a sense of protection that we have to embody, not just with regards to ourselves, but to those around us that we love. As we age, we become more in touch with our mortality, and these symptoms begin to present themselves even from the age of 18! So, regardless of how “young” you are, there are a few things that you might want to consider prepping your body and mind for.
Blood sugar problems
While circulation problems are commonplace as we get older, due to the fact that we sit down a lot more as a result of moving less as we age, but problems with our blood sugar can increase. Diabetes is something that can present itself at a much younger age, especially if you have it in the family, but you can develop it at any time in your life. It’s important, especially now, as there is so much sugar in every item of food, that you keep an eye on your blood sugar levels, and what you eat. Diets such as the Mediterranean diet have been shown to have an effect in lowering diabetes, and this is one avenue to go down if you don’t want to rely on medication for the rest of your life. Sweet treats should be just that, a treat!
Age-related cognitive decline
Alzheimer’s, dementia, or age-related cognitive decline are one of those heartbreaking problems in life, especially when you see it happen to someone you love. Because there has been a lot more research into it in recent years, the advice that has been communicated in which to help prevent it things which are surprisingly simple. Of course, if it is meant to happen, then it will happen, but the general advice being communicated is, very simply, use your brain! We can spend a lot of time being mentally lazy in our lives, so we can prevent this by doing things which challenges our minds. Diet is another thing which plays a big part in your overall brain health. Making sure your brain has the appropriate amount of vitamins, as well as fats like Omega-3, because it’s not generally communicated that your brain consists of 60% fat, are so important to brain health. As a result, eating more fat, especially in the form of the Mediterranean diet, is one of the best ways to get good quality fats in your diet.
Bone issues
In getting older, our body requires more calcium, and this is obtained from our bones. As a result, problems like osteoporosis begin. One of the biggest defences you can put into your daily routine is to take a supplement that contains calcium and vitamin D. Vitamin D, commonly known as “the sunshine vitamin”, is something that is essential for our bones, especially if you live in parts of the world that doesn’t see much sunshine. Taking a cod liver oil supplement is a great way to get vitamin D, but in looking after your bones, glucosamine, MSM and chondroitin are easily available in the form of supplements too. On top of this, making sure you move more will help keep your bone density. In fast, weight training and resistance training have been shown to have very positive effects on minimizing a loss of bone density, especially as you get older. So, there’s no excuse not to get it to the gym, even when you are too old!
Struggles with mental health
This is probably the most important thing to consider as you get older. There are many stories you see out there about people who passed away at a record age, and they lived by themselves, so you would think there was a direct correlation between the two. But, isolation is something that you need to address, in a physical and an emotional sense. Some people are incredibly self-sufficient, but so many aren’t. In making sure that you are happy as you get older, having a close group of friends is one of the best ways to prevent the onset of depression and mental health issues. In fact, regardless of how young you are, a close group of friends, that provide a strong moral support network, is one of the best cures for the blues. In the modern world, where social media gives way to fairweather friends, it is imperative that you have a group of friends that you can count on, and they can count on you. Now, there is an increasing sense of isolation in young people because there’s no sense of interpersonal contact. While one of the solutions to this could be limiting your social media, this is how so many of us communicate now. If you feel that you are getting depressed, it’s vital that you talk to someone.
While some of the problems we get as we age are physical, and tend to happen towards the tail end of our life, a lot of the roots are things we can prevent early on in life. Mental health problems is something that can compound as we get older, so this does mean a lot more soul-searching can be done early on in life, as well as making sure you are doing everything you can to make yourself happy. Diets and health do have a profound impact on this, especially in the physical sense, but if you are trying to be healthier and happier as you age, knowing what the problems are in the first place gives you a better idea on how to prepare yourself; it’s a good idea to sleep on it as soon as possible. For many of us, as we get older, physical problems grate on us and we feel more miserable as a result. Ultimately, people view getting older as a negative thing. However, this doesn’t have to be the case. Instead, you can view getting older as a way of getting wiser, and using this knowledge to find more ways to get that meaning out of life.
