Choice, not chance, determines our destiny. ~Aristotle
I like to think of life as a piece of art of which we are the
artist. That life is a composition piece; a unique woven tapestry of the
choices we make. Dorothy Sander said: “We are all artists. We just
create on our own unique kind of canvas.” I say, we are all artists and we
create our own lives.
One choice we make is attitude: we can see ourselves aging
gracefully, and beautifully, with longevity. Not at all surprisingly, having a
positive attitude contributes to longevity. Research by Becky Levy proves that
having a positive outlook on aging can add seven and a half years to one's
life.
But there is more to this story than just attitude. Genetics
accounts for 1/3 of the factors that lead to a long life so there is the other
2/3 which is the composition of all of the choices we make each moment of every
day: what we eat or drink; what we do or don't do; whether we smoke or
not; what time we go to bed and get up, etc. We can decide to live
healthier and enjoy feeling good as we move along the longevity pathway. To
give you a few ideas of choices that serve us well, here are some examples
from my book, The Aging Gracefully Pathway: A Toolkit for the Journey. Some of
them may surprise or intrigue you:
Longevity Quick Tips:
-Drink water to be healthy, think clearly, and even lose weight.
-Play in the dirt a little (gardening is so good for us
in so many ways) to help win the aging battle (strengthens immunity).
-Prevent gum disease: Floss your teeth - adds six
years to your life.
-From RealAge.com: Two 20 minute walks per day can take five years
off your biologic age.
-Shedding pounds can add 3-4 years to your life.
-Appreciate the magnificent equipment the body is, listening to what it
has to say, and acting as its steward.
Thank you Doctor.
Dr. Cheryl Townsend Winter's book is available at Amazon.
