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Exercise
and Nutrition for Seniors |
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Background |
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As
Dr's. Jesse Jones and Roberta Rikli, Directors, Life Span Wellness
Center, California State University, Fullerton, California write
"Exercise and physical activity are recognized as having great
potential for producing healthy aging, preventing disability and
dependence, and reducing health care costs. An increasing body of
knowledge suggests that besides ... quitting smoking, there probably
is no other lifestyle factor that has much potential for protection
against disease and disability in later years than that of maintaining
a regular program of physical activity. According
to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
physical activity, particularly when combined with good nutrition,
provides protection against most of the common debilitating conditions
of older adults such as heart disease, stroke, hypertension, adult
on-set diabetes, osteoporosis, breast and colon cancer, depression
and frailty. Research
indicates that even moderate levels of fitness can postpone physical
deterioration and loss of independence for as much as 20 years.
Further, exercise programs, even when begun very late in life, have
been found to have tremendously beneficial influences on people's
health and well-being, even to the point of reversing the need for
walking aids and assistance with normal activities of daily living
(ADLs)" |
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