It might sound like science fiction if it weren't so ordinary: Our bones break and mend...we burn a hand and it heals...we forget words and remember in a flash. The body has an astounding ability to bounce back that can feel like a miracle of sorts.
That healing power, though, does slow down as we grow older. We lose a few more words, or more days elapse between a scrape and smooth skin.
While our expected life spans have nearly doubled in the past 100 years, our physical bodies exist more or less as always. As we age, our skin and our musculoskeletal and organ systems suffer wear and tear. Resources for repair take longer to marshal their forces.
But we can help our bodies retain resiliency that incredible ability to absorb stress, strain, and pain and then adapt and recover. Physicians and researchers are making fascinating discoveries about how we can build a more resilient system at any age. Here's exactly what you can do to keep your body bouncing back.
THE BRAIN
OUR BRAINS TEND TO SHRINK AS WE AGE, explains Richard Hunter, Ph.D., director of the Lab of Neuroepigenetics and Genomics at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
Certain cognitive abilities can suffer: For instance, after age 60 our perceptual speed declines-it takes us longer to notice a shift in the environment like a traffic light change.
Our verbal and spatial memory can suffer too, making it harder to remember names and where we've left things. Sound at all familiar? While this is a normal aspect of aging, you can fight it. "Brain resilience generally means holding on to more brain volume and cognitive function longer," Hunter says. He knows scientists he describes as "supersharp" who have devoted their lives to learning and are cognitively intact well into their 80s.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 2024 من Prevention US.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
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هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 2024 من Prevention US.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
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Prevention's loyal readers are walking superfans, so we know you're aware of the boundless benefits of walking a regular routine keeps you fit and helps you maintain muscle strength (crucial during later-life years), and walking is fantastic for flexibility and balance. Yet here's one win from walking that you might not know as much about: It's a proven pain reducer.
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I had never taken a solo vacation before, and when I arrived in St. Maarten two years ago, the fact that I was traveling alone really hit me. I was 55 and divorced, and very apprehensive and self-conscious: With whom would I have dinner? With whom would I sit at the bar? But I put on my big-girl pants the first night and told myself I would grab a bite to eat and then head back to my room and read a book.It didn't turn out that way. I met a fabulous group of other retired women and men, and we talked and danced and drank and laughed all night. We hung out periodically throughout the week, whether at the pool or joining one another for dinner or drinks.
Hormones, ADHD, and the Midlife Balancing Act - Being in perimenopause is all kinds of challenging. Now more women are discovering that their brain fog, lack of impulse control, and constant feeling of distraction may be a clue to something else entirely.
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For people with seasonal allergies, sniffling and sneezing are just the tip of the drippy, itchy iceberg. And symptoms can range from mildly annoying to truly debilitating.Seasonal allergies, also known as hay fever, are allergic reactions to airborne allergens like pollen and mold spores, says Katie Marks-Cogan, M.D., an allergist at Clear Allergy in Culver City, CA. Normally harmless, certain allergens can prompt an immune response in some people, leading to itchy, watery eyes; sneezing; runny nose; congestion; coughing; and shortness of breath.
Mammogram Confusion, Solved! - It's the rare woman who doesn't vividly remember certain firsts
It's her first period, first bra, first use of a tampon, first kiss, and, yes, first mammogram. But for most women, the age at which they should get that first screening test has changed. Earlier this year, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) issued new breast cancer screening guidelines suggesting that women get a mammogram every two years starting at age 40.
5 Myths About Arthritis- Creaky joints are a pain, but some facts” about them are pretty twisted.
Arthritis isn't the only culprit when it comes to achy joints. Infection, injury, bursitis (swelling of the fluid-filled pads that cushion the joints), and tendinitis (inflammation of the tendons that attach muscle to bone) are all reasons they might hurt, says Kirsten Ambrose, M.S., associate director of the Osteoarthritis Action Alliance at the University of North Carolina Thurston Arthritis Research Center. Joint pain is also a symptom of autoimmune diseases like lupus and Hashimoto's disease. So how can you tell if it's osteoarthritis? Get it checked. To diagnose arthritis, doctors typically rely on a patient's history (family background, injuries, and symptoms); a physical exam (looking for bony enlargements or swelling); or imaging like an X-ray or an MRI, Ambrose says. Blood test can show markers of inflammatory arthritis such as rheumatoid arthritis and gout. If it is osteoarthritis, over-the-counter pain medication, physical therapy, and general movement can ease symptoms.
What's Up With...Smelly Gas - You can blame it on the dog, but it happens to everyone.
The average person toots around 14 times a day-it's how your body releases the extra gas that accumulates when you swallow air and digest food, says Shilpa Ravella, M.D., author of A Silent Fire: The Story of Inflammation, Diet, and Disease. If you chew gum or smoke, you'll have even more gas buildup, she adds.
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NUTRITION for Healthy Breasts
YOU KNOW THAT EATING MORE CALORIES THAN YOU BURN can cause your body to accumulate fat.
