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Making a difference in the quality of life of seniors in a culturally sensitive environment |
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| Positive Health for Seniors |
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gavarasana_satya@hotmail.com Download PDF Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good Morning. I thank Dr. Vasundhara Kalasapudi and Mrs. Padmaja Ayyagari for the invitation to address you today (4 June 2008) on a topic of health. Instead of talking on one disease entity, I chose a talk on "Positive Health for Seniors". I would like to emphasize on the positive aspect of health first and address you later on individual disease entities or on concerns that affect you, assuming that I will get the invitation from "India Home" in the future. "I feel good this morning!" I want you to say this, when you get out of the bed in the morning, every morning!! The Indian way of life is to have ablution in the morning and then offer "Surya Namaskar" - a prayer to Sun god, giver of all life on the earth. Yoga teachers tell you how to offer Surya Namaskar. This has two components, first the spiritual and then the physical. Since we have a Yoga teacher to teach you about "Surya Namaskar" I will confine myself to the physical aspect. The steps in Surya Namaskar allow you to get up from the floor and stand up without any difficulty. In that process almost all the muscles and the joints in the body are stretched and moved. This is important. Physical activity is necessary for senior citizens. Fragile health is due to physical inactivity. I wish to emphasize that no one is barred from becoming physically active. Little chores in the house like gardening, cleaning and washing the car, other activities can benefit you in the form of increased strength of muscles and bones. All of us come from India and we think that doing chores is the duty of a servant! So we neglect "exercise ," one component of good health. Regular exercise improves cholesterol levels, reduces blood pressure, reduces body fat, and lowers blood sugar. I have always believed that walking is the best form of exercise. During the years from 1970 and 1980, we, doctors, told Americans to run; now, we ask people to walk. Walking is mild and yet allows burning of calories and brisk walking increases your heart rate. I suggest that you walk for two miles a day and that is what I do. Let me quote "In 1993, the Harvard Alumni study found that men who walked just 1.3 miles a day had a 22% lower death rate than those who walked less than 0.3 mile a day". Do I have to tell you more, to get you walking as a form of exercise? Healthy Diet and Supplements for the senior citizens Let me confess, I take one multivitamin, multi-mineral pill a day. I took Vitamin E pills for a long time, very long time, but I discontinued after a number of reports appeared that there is no benefit by taking Vitamin E. Do you have to take all the nutritional supplements, vitamin supplements and various drugs sold at the counter in various drug stores? Do you believe that these pills prevent aging? Some years back, I wrote an article in Telugu “Nitya yavvanam saadhyamaa?” Translated into English "Is it possible to stay young forever?" I do not remember the contents now, but I can tell you that it is not possible to stay young forever. But, one can slow down the process of aging. If you believe in the saying that "what you eat is what you are", then you should watch out what you eat. Science that teaches one to eat properly is called nutrition science. They use the term "Diet" and it means that a certain number of foods with portions are prescribed to an individual with the recommendation to eat at stated intervals. The standard American Diet is meant for the 70 Kg (154 lb) person and it contains 2,000 calories. In order to obtain all the needed vitamins and minerals, one has to eat a variety of foods that yield 2,000 calories in a day. One of the American Presidents, Mr. Ronald Reagan, was diagnosed with colon cancer in 1985 and there was a lot of discussion in the press about the diet that would have prevented colon cancer. Do you know what diet was recommended to prevent colon cancer? It was the South Indian diet containing ‘sambar’, rice, lentils, vegetables and yogurt. Personally speaking, I turned vegetarian at the age of 65 years! You may ask, “Why become a vegetarian at the age of 65?” Subhadra and I attended Vipassana Meditation course at Dhamma Center in Shelbourne, Massachusetts. It was a tough course requiring a person to observe noble silence, meditation from 4-30 AM till 9-00 PM and a light vegetarian fare. This type of Vipassana Meditation was used by Goutama Buddha to achieve enlightenment and Buddha taught this technique of meditation to his disciples. Ahimsa is the principal reason for one to become a vegetarian and the second reason is that vegetarian diet is healthy. I advise you all, to eat a well-balanced diet rich in fruit and vegetables. Do not be mislead by the colorful advertisements that try to convince senior citizens that they need expensive supplements and we know that some are not proven safe. If you are a Diabetic, has high blood pressure or has high cholesterol and high triglycerides (high content of fat in the blood), then you should talk to the Dietician or a Nutrition expert to guide you properly with vegetarian diet. Some more advice on prevention Harvard Medical School has published a number of books that are useful to seniors so that they can stay healthy. In one of the books, the following guidelines are given.
Thanks for listening. Be Happy and Be Positive. Friends, now is the time for you to ask questions. |
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