10 Tips for Healthy Aging

Healthy aging, like having enough money to retire, is largely dependent on choices you make long before old age actually arrives. Here are 10 tips that will help you look forward to a healthy old age. 

1. Know your family history and share it with your primary care provider. If your genetics put you at higher risk for particular health issues, the sooner you and your provider start planning for prevention, the more likely you will be to avoid conditions that run in your family.  
2.  Have annual check-ups with your primary care provider and get your screenings done on time.  
3. Take care of your teeth and gums. 
4. Develop impulse control. The more control you have over how much junk food you eat, how many harmful substances you avoid and what other risks you take, the more long-term control you will have over your health.  
5. Eat mostly fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans and nuts. Avoid fried foods, highly processed foods, soft drinks and food containing corn syrup, margarine, shortening or palm oil.  
6. Use your muscles. Get an average of 150 minutes a week of moderately strenuous physical activity. Movement, when you’re young, helps prevent pain when you’re older. It also helps you avoid chronic diseases that are common among older adults.  
7. Get plenty of sleep.  
8. Be an optimist. Hopeful, happy people live longer than those who are depressed and pessimistic. Find what brings you joy and pursue it. Look for the good in life and embrace it. If you have mental health issues, act early to seek the help and support you need.  
9. Form strong relationships with friends and family. Having a strong social network will make you both happier and more resilient.  
10. Keep learning and growing. It will help keep you young.