You have worked hard all your life to ensure a comfortable life with a hefty retirement fund once you retire. But if you failed to look after your health throughout these years, then your savings may get drained off very soon for your medication. Unfortunately, a few chronic diseases affect most people after 60. Though they are chronic, maintaining a healthy lifestyle will often keep the symptoms at bay and let you live a normal life. Let’s find out what ailments affect the seniors most.
High Cholesterol
Cholesterol is caused by too many bad fats in the body. These fats clog the arteries and eventually lead to heart diseases. But don’t be mistaken because some fats are actually good for your body. In fact, good fats will actually help you reduce cholesterol. Just keep away from saturated and trans fat, quit smoking and drinking, and exercise daily. Hopefully, if you are on medication and maintain these lifestyle changes, you will reap benefits soon. Almost 47% of seniors are affected by this disease, so it would be wise to be careful.
High Blood Pressure
Another common illness among seniors is high blood pressure. Almost 58% of seniors on Medicare suffer from HBP or hypertension. Usually the cause of a heart attack or stroke, hypertension has no visible symptoms unless you go get yourself checked. Just like high cholesterol, maintaining a healthy lifestyle is imperative if you have high blood pressure. Avoiding alcohol and smoking, regulating sodium intake, and getting rid of stress are crucial if you want to live longer and healthier.
Arthritis
Arthritis occurs when the cartilage in our joints breaks down which causes inflammation and swelling. When left unchecked, this leads to stiffness and lot of pain over time. It affects about 31% of seniors and is a major cause of unwanted lifestyle changes. Exercising regularly, maintaining your weight, and avoiding joint injuries can help you keep away from arthritis.
Heart Disease
When plaque builds up in the arteries that lead to the heart, the flow of blood into the organ will be compromised which can lead to complications like a blood clot, angina, or even a heart attack. Eliminating trans fat, sugar, and salt from your diet, exercising daily, getting rid of stress, and eliminating bad habits such as smoking can help you reduce the chances of getting a coronary heart disease which, if you didn’t know, affects 29% of seniors.
Diabetes
When our body’s sugar level goes above normal, and the body can’t make enough insulin, we suffer from diabetes. Without insulin, our body cannot properly regulate sugar in the cells, and instead, it increases the sugar level in the blood, causing high blood sugar. This alone is the reason behind heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney disease, amputation, gum infections, and even nerve problems. An extremely disciplined lifestyle, losing weight, and controlling alcohol consumption might help.
Kidney Problems
As we age, there is a slow decline in the functionality of our kidneys. This can lead to not just kidney failure but heart diseases as well. It is crucial to keep in check your high blood pressure and diabetes to keep away from chronic kidney diseases. Early detection can be helpful as taking prescription drugs will help you keep the disease at bay. Having regular health screenings after the age of 60 is therefore beneficial.
Depression
After spending a hectic life working, bringing up kids. and maintaining a steady social life, seniors are often very lonely in the last phase of their lives. Retirement and health issues restrict their mobility, and they often end up being quite depressed. It is not a normal part of aging, but more and more elders are being diagnosed with clinical depression which can get serious and often, life-threatening. If there are symptoms like sadness, anxiety, lack of interest, weight loss, and memory problems, you must see a doctor. Again, a good lifestyle, comprising of a nutritious diet and a regular workout, helps a lot. It is also necessary for seniors to get out and be social — join a community for social service, if you want — as keeping yourself happy is intrinsic to your overall mental health
Aging can be an equally happy phase of your life, but you need to take care of your body even before you hit 60. If you stay fit, you can have fun, travel, spend more time with family, and go on vacations whenever you want. But chronic diseases can mar this journey for you. Hence, stay fit and keep away from these age-related diseases.