Henry S. Fraser
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Wednesday September 10, 2014 - Having just celebrated my 70th birthday, the whole question of ageing and how we do it has been occupying my thoughts a bit more than usual. There are so many things that determine how long we live, and how we live long … that is, how we deal with it, and enjoy it. And the quotes above have a great deal of truth.
Research on ageing has been going on for some time, although attempts to slow or stop it, mostly ridiculous, have been made for millenia. And every day we read reports of new research with evidence of some of the factors that may determine if we drop dead at forty, live like a sick frog to ninety or go out sailing and singing at a hundred and two.
The study Centenarians in Barbados (CIB) carried out by Dr. Susan Archer as a PhD project, funded jointly by an Edmund Cohen Grant, Sagicor and the UWI, with the supervision of Dr. Farley Brathwaite and me, demonstrated very clearly that strong spiritual faith, an active life style and strong social relations were the keys to our centenarians’ long lives. And it should be noted that although Dominica’s life expectancy is longer than ours; and the Japanes province of Okinawa has the highest rates of centenarians, Barbados has the highest national figures for centenarians.
‘You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough’ (Mae West)
But note, today’s centenarians grew up not in the land of post-Independence and fast food plenty, but in the rigorous early decades of the twentieth century where EVERYONE walked or cycled and few were fat. Of our 60 centenarians studied, only six had ever been told they might be diabetic or hypertensive, and none had ever been obese.
Of course, genes do have a lot to do with longevity, and there are families where every sibling seems to survive into the nineties or to reach the century. But environment plays an equally large part, with many “inputs”. Physical activity is perhaps the most important overall positive agent, although cigarette smoking can be devastating and have a far greater negative effect, and causing the “drop dead” scenario. Diet and obesity play a huge part, and many other factors play a role. The result of all the research is that you can now go on the web and use one of several complex “equations” or questionnaires to compute your PROBABLE life expectancy.
‘Age is an issue of mind over matter … if you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.’ (Mark Twain)
Meanwhile here are some of the widely accepted tips, in no particular order, but with the order perhaps reflecting my own knowledge of the data and some biases of my own:
Exercise, exercise, exercise, i.e. be active. Walk, dance, play a game, swim or the gym or whatever you like. My favourites are the gym, the swim (best all round exercise of all, and puts no pressure on your joints) and table tennis. This keeps your balance and coordination in shape, as well as keeping you slimmer and fitter in every way. And use the stairs whenever you can. But lifting weights is absolutely essential to keep your muscles from wasting. You need, if you fall at 99, to be able to get up off the floor!
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Eat healthy: the fact is that high sugar, high fat, high salt and low fibre are bad if excessive, and fish, vegetables (high fibre) and foods like plain yogurt are good … There is, of course, excessive hype about healthy diet and fortunes made at the expense of the gullible on claims for all kinds of “neutraceuticals”, but follow two general rules: first, if you’re fat, eat less; and secondly, simply eat less sugar, salt and fat, and more fibre, fish, fruit and veggies.
‘You can’t help getting older, but you don’t have to get old’ (George Burns, centenarian entertainer)
Don’t worry, be happy. When you get out of bed in the morning and discover you’re still alive, even though you may be stiff as a board and still tired, thank God for another day and DECIDE to be happy. I let almost nothing cause me anxiety, because that’s a sure way to shorten my life. A career in medicine and management can only be handled by coping constructively with stress, and whether it’s a big thing like a close friend dying or a major hurricane, or a little thing like the electricity going off or a fender bender, remember that two thirds of the world’s population are living in abject poverty, or malnourished or at war.
And there are many other things you can do that have been shown to both prolong life and to make life happier and more fulfilling; keeping the brain active – crossword puzzles, writing, organising; keeping on learning – through a hobby or reading or new projects; laughing more – humour has long been known to be a great medicine – laugh frequently – joke – read humorous book and share humour; give and do good things for others – being thoughtful, kind and generous has huge positive effects on wellbeing and happiness, AND makes you live longer; keep a pet – or more than one; wear comfortable clothes and shoes, but continue to look good – keep your hair cut and neat; and floss your teeth!
Bottom lines: Move it or you lose it! Walk more, eat less! Don’t worry, be happy! And enjoy every day of your life while you’re still above ground.
Professor Fraser is past Dean of Medical Sciences, UWI and Professor Emeritus of Medicine. Website: profhenryfraser.com
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Henry S. Fraser: Ageing with grace, with a grin, and in motion!
