age well Archives - My New Old Self

It’s the (Positive) Thoughts that Count

Feb

24

2018

Readers of this blog will have noted that My New Old Self has enthusiastically embraced positive thinking. This was most recently in response to a study about the effects of exercise on older people. It revealed that the mere thought that you are not exercising enough can shorten your lifespan. Now there is a new ...

Aging – just accept it

Jan

12

2018

Nobody likes getting old. Yet the older you get the better you may feel. This is not some chirpy elder slogan, but a fact confirmed by scientific research. While our bodies deteriorate as we get older, our minds improve. They don’t get sharper, sorry – but one’s mood often becomes more upbeat. Studies show that ...

Being stubborn makes you live longer

Dec

30

2017

Name a few things that help you live longer. Exercise, sleep, healthy eating… Here’s something new to add to the list: being stubborn. A new study has shown that stubbornness is a characteristic that can help you live a long life. Research published in the academic journal International Psychogeriatrics looked at the mental and physical ...

Telomere care – it’s up to you!

Feb

10

2017

Want to live longer? Here’s how: “Have fun, get exercise of any kind, say something warm to somebody every day and enjoy healthy food.” If you think that sounds like a touchy-feely tip from a credentials-free healer, you’re wrong. Those are the words of a molecular biologist who won the Nobel Prize in Medicine. Dr. ...

Mythbusting – not a bad thing 1

Sep

1

2016

Mythbusting originally came from the name of a TV science show but now It’s a Thing, and not a bad one. In the past 20 years medicine has adopted an evidence-based approach to decision-making. This requires interrogating whether there is irrefutable proof for our beliefs – and busting the myths. This seems a good approach to ...

Live longer – and better!

Jun

24

2016

When I saw this cartoon it depressed me. “These are them?” All this effort to stay young – and all it gets us is more years of being old? Wait a minute. Let’s refill that half-glass of water, abandoning such pessimistic measurement of its emptiness. Readers of this column will know how fond My New Old Self ...

Ali Aged Well 1

Jun

12

2016

A champion with his fists and his mouth, Muhammad Ali was also a champion at getting old. And a champ at living, and aging, with Parkinson’s disease. The contrast between the Ali we remember dancing like a butterfly in his gorgeous youth and the sight of him starting to lurch, slur and tremble could have ...

I’m like: I don’t like it

Mar

7

2016

I’ve got a problem with the word “like”. I don’t like that “like” has replaced the word “said” in spoken English. People don’t say “I said” or “He says” much any more. Instead they say “She was like” and “I’m like”. As for me, I’m like: I don’t like it. But whether I like it or ...

10 Tips on Holiday Travel 1

Dec

16

2015

Whether you go to relatives for the holidays or use the December-January break to take a vacation, you have to spend time getting there. Travelling during the busiest time of the year can be stressful. ‘Tis the season, but by the time you arrive at your destination you may be less than jolly. So it’s worth ...

Face it, it’s about Face Value 3

Nov

22

2015

I just watched a movie starring some of Hollywood’s top talent and everyone was looking old. In a good way. If you think that’s not possible, read on. The movie itself doesn’t really matter. It’s the looking old part that is my focus. For the record, the film is called Homesman. The title is a reference ...