【Silver Age Science】Health and Wellness: Enjoy your silver age and be a healthy old man

1. Actively understand aging and senescence

The elderly should constantly strengthen their self-care awareness, learn self-monitoring knowledge, master self-management skills, detect and treat diseases early, and focus on maintaining functions for middle and late stage diseases.

2. Reasonable diet and balanced nutrition

Elderly people should eat at regular times and in fixed quantities. The daily food should include cereals, beans and potatoes (coarse and fine), animal food, vegetables, fruits, milk and dairy products, nuts, etc., and control the intake of cooking oil and salt. It is recommended that the elderly eat three meals a day and two snacks. The energy distribution of the three meals a day is about 30% for breakfast, about 40% for lunch, and about 30% for dinner, with snacks or fruits added once in the morning and afternoon.

3. Exercise moderately and gradually

It is best for the elderly to choose light to moderate sports according to their own conditions and hobbies, such as brisk walking, jogging, swimming, dancing, Tai Chi, etc. 10-11 am and 3-5 pm are the best times for exercise, and each exercise time is 30-60 minutes.

4. Quit smoking early and limit alcohol consumption

The sooner you quit smoking, the better. Drinking should be limited, avoid drinking strong alcohol with an alcohol content of more than 45%, and avoid excessive drinking.

5. Get a good night's sleep

It is best to take a 1-hour lunch break every day. If you have difficulty falling asleep for a long time or have severe snoring and apnea, you should seek medical attention in time. If you use sleeping pills, please follow the doctor's advice.

6. Monitor your blood pressure regularly

Before the test, you should rest for 5 minutes and avoid emotional excitement, fatigue, smoking, and holding urine. Measure twice each time, with a 1-minute interval, and take the average of the two times. Hypertensive patients should measure their blood pressure at least 3 times a day (once in the morning, once in the afternoon, and once in the evening). Be alert to the morning peak of blood pressure to prevent myocardial infarction and stroke; at the same time, you should avoid low blood pressure, especially low blood pressure caused by improper medication.

7. Monitor blood sugar regularly

Elderly people should monitor their blood sugar once every 1-2 months, not only fasting blood sugar, but also 2 hours after a meal. When the blood sugar of diabetic patients is stable, they should monitor their blood sugar at least 1-2 times a week.

8. Prevent cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases

The elderly should maintain a healthy lifestyle and control risk factors for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, such as controlling excessive intake of fat and salt, exercising moderately, maintaining good sleep, having regular physical examinations, and detecting early symptoms of coronary heart disease and stroke and seeking timely treatment.

9. Pay attention to the early symptoms of stroke and seek medical attention as soon as possible

If you find that an elderly person suddenly has weakness or numbness on one side of the face or limbs, hemianopsia, speech impairment, dizziness accompanied by nausea, vomiting, diplopia and other symptoms, you must dial "120" and send them to a qualified hospital for emergency treatment.

10. Pay attention to the decline of audio-visual function

Avoid picking your ears casually; drink less strong tea and coffee; strictly follow the indications for using ototoxic drugs (such as gentamicin, streptomycin, etc.); strive for a relatively quiet living environment. When hearing loss is severe, the elderly should go to a medical institution for examination in time and wear hearing aids when necessary. Check your eyesight regularly and seek medical attention in time if you find your eyesight is declining.

11. Pay attention to oral health

Rinse your mouth after meals, brush your teeth in the morning and evening, and use dental floss or toothpicks properly; have an oral examination every six months, repair caries holes in time; replace missing teeth in time to restore chewing function as soon as possible.

12. Prevent falls

More than 90% of fractures in the elderly are caused by falls. People should exercise moderately, wear appropriate glasses to improve their vision, avoid going out alone and in crowded environments, place items in an orderly manner indoors, increase lighting, and keep the floor dry and flat.

13. Prevent bone and joint diseases and osteoporosis

Keep your knee joints warm, avoid excessive physical exercise, go down stairs as little as possible, and control your weight to reduce the pressure on your lower limb joints. Increase your sun exposure time. Promote a balanced diet rich in calcium, low in salt, and moderate in protein, and improve bone strength through moderate exercise such as walking or running.

14. Prevent stress urinary incontinence

Pay attention to changing behaviors and lifestyle habits that increase abdominal pressure, such as long-term standing, squatting, weight-bearing, long-term chronic cough, constipation, etc.

15. Maintain a positive attitude and learn to self-direct

Once you find that the elderly have symptoms such as insomnia, headache, dizziness, tinnitus, and are depressed, gloomy, restless, and lack of energy, are nervous and fearful about trivial matters, lack interest in daily activities, often have inferiority, self-blame, and guilt, are passive and over-dependent in everything, feel that life is meaningless, or have early symptoms of depression such as irritability, fatigue, chest tightness, sleep disorders, weight loss, dizziness and headache, you should see a doctor in time and ask a specialist to provide necessary psychological counseling and drug treatment.

16. Prevent the occurrence and development of Alzheimer’s disease

Most cases of Alzheimer's disease begin after the age of 65, and are mainly manifested by persistent memory, language, visual-spatial disorders and personality changes. Once the elderly show early symptoms such as a significant decline in memory and prominent forgetfulness of recent events, they should seek medical attention as soon as possible to prevent or delay the occurrence and development of Alzheimer's disease.

17. Rational use of drugs

When taking medication, you must strictly follow the doctor's instructions, understand the indications and contraindications, and avoid repeated or multiple medications. Do not abuse antibiotics, sedatives, anesthetics, anti-inflammatory analgesics, antiarrhythmic drugs, cardiotonic drugs, etc. Do not easily use "secret recipes", "folk recipes", "proven recipes", "new drugs", "foreign drugs", etc. If adverse reactions occur during medication, you can temporarily stop taking the medication and seek medical attention in time.

18. Regular physical examinations

The elderly should have a physical examination at least once a year, actively participate in the survey organized by the government and large hospitals, pay great attention to early danger signs of cancer such as abnormal masses, intestinal bleeding, and weight loss. If abnormalities are found, they should go to a specialized oncology hospital for treatment. If cancer is found, they should go to a regular hospital for standardized treatment. Early detection and early intervention of chronic diseases, take effective intervention measures, and reduce the risk of disease. Keep complete medical records.

19. Carry a health emergency card with you when you go out

The card should include basic information such as name, home address, workplace, family contact information, diseases the patient has, possible situations that may occur, and key points for simple first aid on the spot. If necessary, it should also include requests for contact vehicles, hospital escort, etc.

20. Promote the active participation of the elderly in society

You can participate in sports and fitness, cultural and entertainment activities that are beneficial to your physical and mental health according to your own situation, and promote a scientific, civilized and healthy lifestyle. Pay attention to reproductive health and avoid unsafe sexual behavior. Advocate that the whole society cares for the elderly and realizes that the elderly have a place to live, medical care, work, study and have fun.