Keeping Your Balance and Avoiding Falls for Older Persons

Keeping Your Balance and Avoiding Falls 
Safety Tips for Around Your House
For Older Persons, Seniors, Elderly:

Avoid clutter. Don't leave things on the floor. Pick up after yourself.
Make sure you have good lighting for both night and day.
Keep furniture and tables to a minimum. Leave room for walking.
Keep areas beside the bed and into a toilet clear and uncluttered.
Use hand bars beside toilet and shower.
Have a strong small ladder for reaching up to higher shelves.
Wear good shoes indoors.
Make sure rugs and runners are secure on the floor.
Watch out if you have steps into your garage or rooms.
Be careful, slow down, be alert!
Use your cane or walker as needed.
Be aware if medicines you take make you feel lightheaded or dizzy.
If sitting for a long time, stand up slowly and carefully.
Move carefully on arthritic or injured limbs.
Use tips and techniques for standing up carefully and safely.
Exercise each day to improve strength, flexibility, and balance.
Make sure all chairs, seats, and tables are in good working order.
Use it, or slowly but surely loose it.
Keep all cabinet drawers or doors pushed and closed properly.
Let others help you or pay for services.
Know you own strengths, limitations, or weaknesses.
If you are obese, it will impair your balance skills. Loose weight!
Do exercises to improve the strength of your legs and hips.
See a physician for serious dizziness.
Practice Tai Chi Chuan to improve your balance skills.
- Michael P. Garofalo, Balance

Aging Well  Information, Bibliography, Quotes, Notes, Links

Positive Aging Principles

"Through processes embedded in valued subjective experience we have learned that disciplining how we think and feel about ourselves and our health is as important to well-being as any physiological markers of disease.  Positive Aging describes a process whereby we take control of our own late life experiences by discovering meaning in growing old that transcends the deteriorative processes of aging.  Positive Agers posses four characteristics: (a) mobilizing resources to meet the challenges of aging, (b) making life choices that preserve well-being, (c) cultivating flexibility to deal with age-related decline, and (d) focusing on the positives (verses the negatives) in old age."
-  Robert T. Hill  

Seven Strategies for Positive Aging
1.  You can find meaning in old age.
2.  You're never to old to learn.
3.  You can use the past to cultivate wisdom.
4.  You can strengthen life-span relationships.
5.  You can promote growth through giving and receiving help.
6.  You can forgive yourself and others.
7.  You can possess a grateful attitude. 
-  Robert T. Hill, Ph.D., Seven Strategies for Positive Aging, 2008

Seven Strategies for Positive Aging.   By Robert D. Hill, Ph.D..  New York, W.W. Norton and Co., 2008.  Index, references, 63 pages.  ISBN: 978-0393705232.  VSCL.   

Making Aging Positive by Linda P. Fried 

Aging Well:  Recommended Readings, Quotes, and Resources

Living the Good Life: Principles, Recommendations, Wisdom

Virtues: Quotations, Sayings, Recommended Reading, Resources

Family Health Issues

My wife, Karen, is scheduled today, 11/19/23, for urological/gynecological surgery today at Legacy Hospital in Vancouver. We check in at 5:30 am this morning. Surgery around 9 am. She and all of us are very concerned and hope for the best outcome.  She will stay at the hospital overnight.

I had a cardio-conversion procedure done at Peace Health Hospital in Vancouver on 11/22/23. Thus far, my serious and scary symptoms of atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter have abated; and, I feel fine and can walk and exercise again.

We are both over 75 years of age.  We try to face and adjust to our medical problems in a positive, constructive, and practical manner.  We don't complain at lot, and try to laugh off some of our nagging problems of old age.  On the whole, we are happy and grateful people.

Improving Balance in Seniors

 Balance

Maintaining and Improving Your Balance
Methods, Exercises, Concepts, Causes
Better Balance for Seniors and Avoiding Falls

By Michael P. Garofalo

Bibliography Links Resources Information

Quotations References Commentary

Instructor Qualifications of Michael P. Garofalo

 

 

Advice for the Elderly

"Japanese Advice for the Elderly
Aging Hints from Hinohara Shigeaki, 1911-
(translated and adapted from Tanoyaku, Vol 38, June, 2007)

Emphasize love, not hate
Recognize your imperfection but aim to improve
Try something new
Focus your attention; don't waste time thoughtlessly
Find a model person to imitate
Seek to empathize
Value encounters with others
Maintain small eating habits
But don't be neurotic about diet; enjoy food
Walk; use stairs as much as possible
Participate in group sport activities
Enjoy leisure; avoid a life with only work
Handle stress by exercising; walk, play
Take responsibility for your own behavior
Change habits when necessary; don't be obsessed with maintaining habits"
-  Advice for Aging Well from David K. Reynolds, Ph.D.

A New Weekly Workout Plan

Monday      
Beat around the bush
Lift myself up by the bootsraps
Make mountains out of mole hills
Get all fired up
Jump to conclusions
Climb the walls

Tuesday
Drag my heels
Make my point
Push my luck
Pull my own load
Hit the nail on the head

Wednesday      
Bend over backwards
Jump on the Band Wagon
Grab all I can get
Run around in circles
Shoulder my share of responsibility

Thursday    
Shop till I drop
Hang loose
Grind to a halt
Rest and recuperate

Friday      
Push it to the limit
Pull out all the stops
Add fuel to the fire
Pave the roadway to hell
Throw it all away

Saturday
Open a can of worms
Put my foot in my mouth
Start the ball rolling
Go over the edge

Sunday
Pick up the pieces.
Wade through the morning paper
Lift my spirits
Toot my own horn

-  Mike Garofalo, 2005, Aging Well

 

Home Safety Tips for Seniors

"Housing Tips and Advice from The National Aging in Place Council

The Boomer’s Roadmap for Aging in Place: How to Prepare Today for your Senior Years

Preventing Falls at Home

Fall Prevention Tips for Seniors | A Home Design Guide

Exercise & Physical Activity: Your Everyday Guide from the National Institute on Aging

The Benefits of Cooking with Alzheimer’s: A Caregiver’s Guide

14 Ways to Help Seniors Avoid Isolation

Canine Caregivers for Dementia and Alzheimer’s Patients

A Senior’s Guide to Using Computers and Software

Economic Security for Seniors Facts

Home Safety and Security for Aging-in-Place Seniors"


Thanks to Information provided by Elder Impact:

Marie Villeza
information@elderimpact.org ǀ http://elderimpact.org/
340 S. Lemon Ave #5780 ǀ Walnut, CA ǀ 91789

Here are some resources for Seniors that Mike Garofalo has added to his hypertext notebooks:  

Aging Well

How to Live a Good Life

Fitness Methods for Seniors

Program for Healthy Aging

A Twelve-Point Program for Healthy Aging

"1.  Eat an anti-inflammatory diet.
2.  Use dietary supplements wisely to support the body's defenses and natural healing power.
3.  Use preventive medicine intelligently: know your risks of age-related disease, get appropriate diagnostic and screening
tests and immunizations, and treat problems (like elevated blood pressure and cholesterol) in their early stages.
4.  Get regular physical activity throughout life. 
5.  Get adequate rest and sleep.
6.  Learn and practice methods of stress protection. 
7.  Exercise your mind as well as your body. 
8.  Maintain social and intellectual connections as you go through life. 
9.  Be flexible in mind and body: learn to adapt to losses and let go of behaviors no longer appropriate for your age.
10.  Think about and try to discover for yourself the benefits of aging. 
11.  Do not deny the reality of aging or put energy into trying to stop it.  Use the experience of aging as a stimulus
for spiritual awakening and growth. 
12.  Keep an ongoing record of the lessons you learn, the wisdom you gain, and the values you hold.  At critical points in
your life, read this over, add to it, revise it, and share it with people you care about." 

-  Andrew Weil, Healthy Aging: A Lifelong Guide to Your Physical and Spiritual Well-Being, 2005.

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise Persons

Aging Well, Senior Citizens

Repost from 2019

Good Advice from the Doctor

I have benefited from reading and adopting the ideas and suggestions of Andrew Weil, M.D..  His books are informative and provide persuasive facts and arguments for using “integrative medicine” to achieve improved health and well-being.  Persons of all ages can benefit from his advice, and his book “Healthy Aging” is especially relevant to seniors like myself.  Those who practice Taijiquan, Qigong, and Yoga will find support for their practices in Dr. Weil’s writing. 

Eight Weeks to Optimum Health: A Proven Program for Taking Full Advantage of Your Body’s Natural Healing Power.  By Andrew Weil, M.D..  Ballantine Books, 2007.  320 pages.  ISBN: 978-0345498021.  VSCL. 

Spontaneous Happiness: A New Path the Emotional Well-Being.  By Andrew Weil, M.D..  Little Brown and Co., 2013.  288 pages.  ISBN: 978-0316129428.  VSCL. 

Healthy Aging: A Lifelong Guide to Your Well-Being.  By Andrew Weil, M.D..  Anchor Books, 2007.  368 pages.  ISBN: 978-0307277541.  VSCL. 

“Andrew Weil, M.D., is a world-renowned leader and pioneer in the field of integrative medicine, a healing oriented approach to health care which encompasses body, mind, and spirit. Combining a Harvard education and a lifetime of practicing natural and preventive medicine, Dr. Weil is the founder and director of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona Health Sciences Center, where he is also a Clinical Professor of Medicine and Professor of Public Health and the Lovell-Jones Professor of Integrative Rheumatology. Dr. Weil received both his medical degree and his undergraduate AB degree in biology (botany) from Harvard University. Dr. Weil is an internationally-recognized expert for his views on leading a healthy lifestyle, his philosophy of healthy aging, and his critique of the future of medicine and health care. Online, he is the editorial director of www.drweil.com, the leading web resource for healthy living based on the philosophy of integrative medicine; and, can be found on Facebook (facebook.com/drweil), Approximately 10 million copies of Dr. Weil's books have been sold, including "Spontaneous Healing," "8 Weeks to Optimum Health," "Eating Well for Optimum Health," "The Healthy Kitchen," "Healthy Aging," and "Why Our Health Matters."”
- Quotation from Amazon Books

Here are some of my webpages related to these subjects:

Happiness, Well-Being, Flourishing

How to Live a Good Life

Aging Well

Paths to Fitness and Well Being

Advice for Seniors

"Housing Tips and Advice from The National Aging in Place Council

The Boomer’s Roadmap for Aging in Place: How to Prepare Today for your Senior Years

Preventing Falls at Home

Fall Prevention Tips for Seniors | A Home Design Guide

Exercise & Physical Activity: Your Everyday Guide from the National Institute on Aging

The Benefits of Cooking with Alzheimer’s: A Caregiver’s Guide

14 Ways to Help Seniors Avoid Isolation

Canine Caregivers for Dementia and Alzheimer’s Patients

A Senior’s Guide to Using Computers and Software

Economic Security for Seniors Facts

Home Safety and Security for Aging-in-Place Seniors"


Links provided by Elder Impact:

Marie Villeza
information@elderimpact.org ǀ http://elderimpact.org/
340 S. Lemon Ave #5780 ǀ Walnut, CA ǀ 91789

Here are some resources for Seniors that Mike Garofalo has added to his hypertext notebooks:  

Aging Well

How to Live a Good Life

Fitness Methods for Seniors

Can Eating Less Slow the Aging Process?

For me, eating less and loosing 30 pounds of body weight in the last two years has significantly lowered my average morning fasting blood sugar and four month A1C readings; and, has resulted in my cardiologist reducing my blood pressure medicine dosages in half.  I feel stronger and more energetic, and I exercise in some way on a daily basis.  I sleep soundly and dream every night.  My waistline measurements have decreased from 44 inches to 40 inches.  My current goal is to reach a body weight of 230 pounds, and a waist of 38 inches, at a height of 6’6”.  Consequently, I plan to continue my efforts to eat less, but eat nutritious meals. 

I doubt I can live longer by eating less, but the likelihood of reducing the significant possible negative health effects of my Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure seem worth the effort. 

Is fasting one day a week reasonable for me?    I am currently not sure about this approach to reducing caloric intake, since I actively exercise each day.  Maybe skipping dinner twice a week might be an option.  Comments?? 

“While human calorie restriction doesn't have the same impact on life span, it does provide numerous benefits, such as a greatly lowered risk for most degenerative conditions of aging, and improved measures of health. In recent years, human studies of long-term and short-term calorie restriction have comprehensively demonstrated these benefits. Many researchers believe that the evidence to date shows the practice of CR will in fact extend the healthy human life span, but there simply isn't enough data yet to pin down the effects on life expectancy. It is plausible that they are at least as good as those resulting from exercise. If so, it could mean a difference of 5-10 years of life.”

-  Fight Aging: Caloric Restriction Explained

“Calorie restriction (CR) extends life span and retards age-related chronic diseases in a variety of species, including rats, mice, fish, flies, worms, and yeast. The mechanism or mechanisms through which this occurs are unclear. CR reduces metabolic rate and oxidative stress, improves insulin sensitivity, and alters neuroendocrine and sympathetic nervous system function in animals. Whether prolonged CR increases life span (or improves biomarkers of aging) in humans is unknown. In experiments of nature, humans have been subjected to periods of nonvolitional partial starvation. However, the diets in almost all of these cases have been of poor quality. The absence of adequate information on the effects of good-quality, calorie-restricted diets in nonobese humans reflects the difficulties involved in conducting long-term studies in an environment so conducive to overfeeding. Such studies in free-living persons also raise ethical and methodologic issues. Future studies in nonobese humans should focus on the effects of prolonged CR on metabolic rate, on neuroendocrine adaptations, on diverse biomarkers of aging, and on predictors of chronic age-related diseases.”
-  Caloric Restriction and Aging, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition   

Calorie restriction (CR), or caloric restriction, is a dietary regimen that is based on low calorie intake. "Low" can be defined relative to the subject's previous intake before intentionally restricting calories, or relative to an average person of similar body type. Calorie restriction without malnutrition has been shown to work in a variety of species, among them yeast, fish, rodents and dogs to decelerate the biological aging process, resulting in longer maintenance of youthful health and an increase in both median and maximum lifespan.

Live Longer:  The One Anti-Aging Trick That Works by Robert Roy Britt.

Making Aging Positive by Linda P. Fried

The Longevity Diet by Lisa Waldford and Brian M. Delaney

2010

Aging Well: Recommended Reading, Quotations, Reflections