Keeping the Gold in the “Golden Years”: Staying Healthy as We Age

This article was written by: Judy Costlow

I have been aging for decades, but it only took me one year to grow old! “Things” can happen quickly in our lives as we age, and we may not be prepared to handle them. Loss of a loved one, a stroke, a broken hip, heart attack, and diabetes are all too common for older folks. A friend says, Jan fell and broke her hip. Even though she is doing well, she is limited in her physical activities, as she must now use a cane.What can we do to better prepare ourselves for healthier aging? Part of the answer, which this article explores, lies in building and maintaining social connections, keeping physically fit, and avoiding falls.

The Importance of Connection 

Talking with many of my retired friends, I am struck by how important groups and communities are in our lives as we age. Traditionally our most important community is our family. But, many of us do not live near families these days and so we find support in other groups such as our friends, social groups, volunteer groups, and neighborhoods. These connections enrich our lives by connecting us with people of similar interests and goals. We are healthier when we participate in groups — both emotionally and physically. Many researchers have found that people live better, longer, and safer lives when they are in cohesive communities.¹

Even during a natural disaster, a community can save your life. The 1995 Chicago heat wave provides an example of how essential communities are. This disaster claimed the lives of over 700 elderly residents. An analysis of these deaths found that vibrant, connected, and socially cohesive neighborhoods lost far fewer of their elderly residents than did neighborhoods where the elderly were isolated. Surprisingly, the well-connected neighborhoods were no wealthier than the non-connected areas; many were low-income and run-down communities where residents lacked air conditioning and other resources. What differed between the two types of communities was that, in the cohesive areas, the neighbors knew one another and went out of their way to check on the elderly, both in person and by phone, during the heat wave. Research indicates that residents of neighborhoods that have robust social infrastructures are significantly healthier both during ordinary times and during disasters.¹

This is one reason that women tend to do better than men as they age, because women tend to be more in touch with their neighbors and families and to have stronger social ties than men do. Retirement communities can help foster such cohesion and community infrastructure for their residents. In fact, retirement community residents live, on average, a few years longer and are healthier than older people who are isolated and disconnected from social groups.² Senior centers can also offer this type of support, since eating, exercising, and playing games together connects people. We can also create our own support communities.

Joan was undergoing chemotherapy for lung cancer. Her friends kept asking, “What can I do to help you?” So, Joan set up a calendar where each of her friends could choose one day every three weeks when they were “on call” to run errands, fix a meal, take her on an outing, or just visit. Joan created her community and her friends were grateful and felt useful. She also started a knitting group that met weekly, where she taught the others to knit. Great friendships evolved, new skills were learned, and Joan found a purpose in her life. When Joan did die, the friendships she helped establish continued and thrived.

The Importance of Exercise 

Our communities can also help us stay fit in our older years.

My husband and I loved to hike so, every Sunday we would call friends and go for a hike in the nearby mountains. It became a regular event every week with old and new friends. After my husband died, I continued to hike with my Sunday friends. They supported me as I worked through my grief and helped me stay fit. I could not have done it alone.

Getting older should not be a barrier to staying fit. If we are fit, we are better able to face the health challenges we will have later in life. In particular, there is now a significant body of evidence demonstrating the relationship between regular exercise and prevention of coronary heart disease (which is the number one killer of women in the U.S.).³ For maximum benefits, we need to do a combination of endurance activities and weight-bearing exercises.

Endurance activities get our heart rates up and speed up our breathing; they include running, bicycling, swimming, dancing and brisk walking. “Endurance activities help prevent or delay many diseases that seem to come with age, like heart disease, diabetes, and osteoporosis and in some cases, endurance activity can also improve chronic diseases or their symptoms.”⁴ Moving your joints can keep your body active and pain-free, and can help with arthritis.

Weight-bearing exercises build bone strength by forcing muscles to work against gravity; they include weight-lifting, walking, jogging, playing racquet sports, dancing, and climbing stairs. Weight-bearing exercise can also help slow bone loss from osteoporosis.⁵

Maria, age 70, says, “Exercise is never a question of will I do it each day, but when will I do it. I have never felt better and know I can do most anything easily. My way of life is active and involved!  

Exercise can be anything that gets you moving, such as walking, gardening, bicycling, dancing, hiking, swimming, etc. Don’t wait until you experience a health scare or near-brush with death (like a heart attack or a diabetes diagnosis) to see the value of exercise in our lives. Here is where a group can motivate us to get moving. Join a group at the gym, or gather some friends and start walking. Many senior centers have exercise groups as well.

Since I reached age 65, I find that my groups are more and more important in my life and health. I am a bicyclist and participate in a group that rides most every week and socializes afterwards. We range in age from 55 to 83. We love being together and support one another even outside our biking world. 

If you haven’t been active or have health problems, first talk to your medical provider about what kinds of exercise are safe for you to engage in. Then, start slowly, with a short (10-minute) period of light exercise or a brisk walk several times a week; and gradually increase how hard you exercise and for how long.⁶ Women who are disabled can do exercises to strengthen the muscles they can use, as well.

My Mom was always a slow walker when I was growing up. She was the last one home from our family walks. At age 75, she joined a university-sponsored study for older people and suddenly she started walking fast. I could hardly keep up with her and she lived to be 101 years old!

The Importance of Fall Prevention 

Falling is one of our biggest challenges as we age, since our bones become more fragile and our other senses may not be as sharp as they were when we were younger. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that falls are the leading cause of injury death among adults aged 65 or older, and the most common cause of non-fatal injuries and hospital admissions for trauma.⁷ Falling can cause fractures to hips, wrists, and other vulnerable bones, with recovery times that can range up to several months.

Safety precautions are always important, but are especially so as we age. Here are some simple things we can do to avoid falls and their negative outcomes.⁸