Healthy aging and longevity Archive

These tiny devices can improve your communication, your relationships, and even your brain function, but only if you use them. 

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Age-related hearing loss affects about a quarter of people ages 65 to 74 and half of those ages 75 and older, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Over all, though, it tends to be more male-oriented.

“By middle age, many men also have hearing nerve damage from long exposure to noises like power tools, music, and guns,” says Dr. Steven Rauch, an otologist with Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts Eye and Ear. Some career choices—like construction, manufacturing, or military service—also contribute.

Participating in a medical study may benefit your health and perhaps that of millions of others.

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If you've ever considered donating your body to science—or granting science a temporary loan—now's the time to do it. Researchers are always recruiting patients for studies of new treatments and preventive strategies for diseases ranging from Alzheimer's to zoster (shingles). In the simplest terms, these studies compare existing approaches to newer ones in similar groups of people and determine which is more effective.

"Clinical trials are the vehicle by which we transfer things that we think into things that we know or don't know," says Dr. Jeffrey Drazen, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and editor in chief of The New England Journal of Medicine.

You may be able to save time and money—and spare yourself frustration—by adopting a more minimal approach to preventing disease.

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As the Shaker lyrics go, "'Tis the gift to be simple," and simplicity is a gift you might want to grant yourself in the new year. If so, you'll have some help from health experts. In the past few years, complicated advice for diet and exercise has given way to simpler, more sustainable guidelines, and the FDA has come down in favor of simple soap and water over antimicrobial cleaners to prevent infectious diseases.

If you've vowed to make positive changes in your lifestyle this year, you're likely to be more successful if you don't take on complex new regimens. "People can achieve remarkable changes in their lives one small step at a time," says Dr. Edward M. Phillips, assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School and medical editor of the Harvard Special Health Report Simple Changes, Big Rewards (www.health.harvard.edu/change).

Some potential medicines appear capable, in animals, of producing the same changes in body chemistry that calorie restriction does. 

Trans fats are undeniably bad for health, and they're still in many foods.

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Lurking on supermarket shelves, within colorful, seemingly harmless packages, is something that can cause serious harm to your health: trans fat. "No amount of trans fat is acceptable, from a health standpoint," says registered dietitian Kathy McManus, director of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital.

About trans fat

Become a detective

Today's high-tech stationary bikes are ridden at top speed, with instructors telling cyclists when to coast, sprint, and climb.

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One of the hottest trends among the workout set springs from your old stationary bicycle. The new use for old wheels is a supercharged cardio workout called indoor cycling or Spinning (its trademarked name). First popular in the 1990s, the activity is still going strong and is now popular among older adults. "Many classes are specifically for seniors, with instructors who are familiar with modifications for your age group," says Jacob Girlinghouse, a physical therapist with Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital.

The workout and benefits

Making it work

It appears that adopting a regular routine of moderate physical activity, such as walking, helps older adults remain mobile longer and may also help them to recover faster from physical disabilities. 

Dairy products don't seem to harm the heart. But plant-based fats are probably a better choice than cheese.

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Health-conscious consumers know to steer clear of diets that include lots of meat—especially fatty, salty processed meat. But what's the deal with dairy? Nutrition experts have long recommended low-fat milk and yogurt as good choices for getting the two to three daily servings of dairy recommended by federal dietary guidelines.

Over the past few decades, Americans have been spooning up more yogurt and drinking much less milk. But the biggest change by far has been in our cheese consumption, which has skyrocketed since the 1970s (see "Trends in dairy intake: Less milk, more cheese and yogurt").

A few simple precautions can minimize your risk.

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Every time you venture out into the bone-shivering, teeth-chattering cold of a Northern winter, your heart and blood vessels kick into overdrive to keep your internal organs cozy. To accomplish this feat, the tiny blood vessels in outlying areas such as the fingers and toes constrict to stem the loss of body heat into the environment. The flip side of this protective maneuver is that the heart must beat against extra force to overcome the resistance it meets in the narrowed vessels.

Supply and demand mismatch

Heed the warning signs