Myth # 4 Longevity Equals Pain, Disability, and Disease How often is the comment made that people simply dont want to live a long time? Why would anyone want to live a long time when old age brings pain, suffering, and the loss of bodily functions, mobility, independence, and even the loss of dignity? Although that is exactly what happens to most of the elderly in so-called modern countries, there are individuals and groups of people who age with grace, comfort, and activity. Look at the over ninety-year-old Jack LaLanne who has spent his entire life advocating exercise, loading up on fruits and vegetables, and not eating the junk. The Abkasians, who live in the Georgia Republic in the former USSR, are one such group of long-lived people. Why do these people live to often be one-hundred years old and age so well? Are their bodies made differently than ours or do they own the secret to the Fountain of Youth? According to Dan Georgakas, their youthful secrets are: Lean body mass and the cultural disapproval of excess fat Diet of mostly fresh fruits, vegetables, and plant foods with no coffee, sugar, and very little meat, butter, or salt Caloric intake of between 1500 and 2000 calories (Americans commonly intake 2500 to 4000 calories) Lifelong exercise, especially walking Lifelong work, steady but not stressful or to exhaustion Few smoke Reverence for the aged By observing other cultures, we could learn how to dramatically increase our chances of nearing the hundred year mark and do so with a full, purposeful life. Now who wouldnt want to live a long, fulfilling life? |
