Although we consider aging to be a normal part of being human and although we will all age and it’s impossible to avoid it completely, recent research has uncovered certain aspects of our lifestyle that we can change, to slow this process down.

The food we choose to eat needs to be unprocessed and as close to nature as possible. We need to eat essential fats and oils, which supply our body with the foundation for good health - both physical and mental health. People that exercise also age more slowly, and staying mentally active, through work, volunteer activities, social interaction and stress reduction, also slows down the process.

Furthermore, researchers have also found that our attitude to aging is very important, and that if we accept aging as a process that we can’t do anything about, our decline will be pre-determined, whereas if we are positive about what the future may hold for us as aging people, we have a much better chance of staying cognitively alert and physically healthy.

There are some benefits to aging that are quite exciting. If we stay physically and mentally active we become capable of assessing situations with greater clarity, and we can use our life experience to help others.

We become capable of using our knowledge in a practical and useful way, and we would call this quality, wisdom. We also become capable of handling emotional situations with greater ease, which helps us to stay calm and collected, when in our youth we may have blown up emotionally, and regretted it later.

Therefore, as we age, if we make the right choices, we can end up being happier, smarter, more balanced individuals, who are capable of enjoying the rest of our lives immensely.

Here are some really good tips to consider in order to grow old slowly, gracefully and healthfully.
1. Keep away from smoking, and smokers
2. Keep your weight down. Leanness is high on the list because fat cells have several bad effects - weight, hardening of the arteries and a propensity to cause type 2 diabetes.
3. Take supplements. Particularly alpha-lipoic acid and acetyl-L-carnitine. These boost the energy output.
4. Eat Less. Eating less food appears to reduce tissue wear and tear from excess blood sugar, inflammation and free radicals. Drink plenty of water to replace the meal.
5. Strength training is almost as important as cardio exercise to the aging body. This is because from 40 on the body can lose .25kg of muscle each year. Lifting weights 1-3 times a week for a half-hour can easily replace muscle.
7. Get walking. Through age, blood vessel walls tend to harden and exercise keeps blood vessels pliable. Light exercise also reduces the likelihood of diabetes, cancer, depression, dementia and even aging of the skin.
8. Reduce arguments. Rather than allow arguments to simmer, agree that it is OK to have differing points of view
9. Live around plants. Having a garden or greenhouse to grow plants in is a wonderful way to decrease stress or recuperate from illness.

Don’t worry be happy