Live Longer Better

We have had this conversation before in previous issues of QBM.com, but, where the past messages were about active aging, this new message is about healthy aging - with the intention of allowing us, as we get older, to remain a resource to our families, communities and economies. 

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Experts define healthy aging as “surviving to the age of 70 years, being free of 11 major chronic diseases, having no impairment in memory or physical function, and being in good mental health.”

 

​The World Health Organization slightly differs in their definition, believing many individuals have one or more health conditions that, when well controlled, have little influence on their wellbeing https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/healthy-ageing-and-functional-ability. They say, healthy aging is about creating the environments and opportunities that enable people to be and do what they value throughout their lives (that's how we at queeniebrownmagazine.com define retirement, but, that is a different article). 

 

Researchers behind the Global Burden of Disease Study published in the medical journal, The Lancet, indicated that a WHOPPING 95% (yes, that number is ridiculous) of the global population is living with at least one health condition. On a global scale, approximately 1 in 3 adults lives with two or more chronic health conditions simultaneously. That is more than 1.5 billion people.

 

You may think that percentage is high because the poorest and most vulnerable nations spiked the numbers, and you would be correct. But, don't get too cocky because 87% of adults aged 65 and older in the US report having one chronic illnesses, and in Canada the percentage drops to 83%. In the UK it is approximately 74%.  In fact, across almost all high-income countries the number is exceptionally high. Even in the countries that manage to keep their baseline numbers low, they land at just over 60%. France and Switzerland has everyone beat at 48%. These numbers are alarming because they show that we may have added additional years to our lives, but many of us experience dreadful disease in those latter years. A Mayo Clinic study revealed a widening global gap between lifespan and healthspan, with the average disparity increasing to 9.6 years in 2019, and the U.S. experiencing the largest divide worldwide. We are living longer but not living healthier. 

 

So, what are we doing wrong, and how can we effectively support the effort to "remain resourceful" into our senior years?

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Most of us talk about health and illness and wellness and self-care, but, do we have an idea what actually is taking place in our bodies? Do we know how we are harming our body?

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First step then is understanding that our body is a physiological masterpiece. It is an integrated network of 11 major organ systems that constantly communicate to maintain a stable internal balance. This self-healing, living, biological organism is truly astounding as it shares resources like oxygen, food, and water to fuel our cells which powers every action our body performs. Our cells do so by converting sugar and oxygen into a usable energy molecule (called ATP adenosine triphosphate). So, if our body goes out of balance from stress, injury, neglect... guess what happens... well, our network is in constant communication so it adapts. But, because it adapts, we (who are not paying attention because we are overwhelmed with life or distracted) are unaware that one system is overcompensating for another or worse, we don't realize that several systems have gone out of whack, forcing the others to work harder. This underworked/overworked imbalance eventually slows then breaks down - leading us to illness, severe illness or death.

 

Sound dramatic? Picture you as a passionate, dedicated, employee who wants to please your boss and your colleagues. You will do anything to keep a healthy work environment. Your colleagues know this about you so chill in the lunchroom while you do their work. What do you think will eventually happen if the boss does not intercede and put a stop to this inequity? You will either leave, explode or get sick. This is what happens in your body if that imbalance/inequity persists.

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Unless you ensure the 11 systems maintain their balance (that each system is doing the job it is supposed to do), there will be a failure, eruption, illness or - you guessed it - death.

 

Look. You have one job to do; and that job is to be a great boss who ensures every system is doing what it is supposed to do - well. No, paying the mortgage, getting your child into that excellent school, caring for your ailing parent, voting for the right politician - or solving world peace - are not more important. If you do not do your one job, you will not be able to do any job. 

 

So, how do you be an excellent boss (of your body)?

 

In the article, Optimal dietary patterns for healthy aging, published March 24, 2025, the "...Healthy Eating diet showed as the strongest association with healthy aging... Higher intakes of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, unsaturated fats, nuts, legumes and low-fat dairy products were linked to greater odds of healthy aging..."

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-025-03570-5

But, we know that by now, don't we? We know, "higher intakes of trans fats, sodium, sugary beverages and red or processed meats (or both);" ultra-processed foods like deli-meats, white bread (no matter how fortified), fast foods; or non-food items (that pretend to be food) are poisonous. 

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We know but may have been ignoring the fact that getting and staying fit is crucial to maintaining health. Do we comprehend that building muscles is more than about vanity? Being strong and able to move quickly with stability is crucial to longevity. See this article, The Need for Speed: Improving Muscle Power for Longevity as reported in Mayo Clinic Proceedings https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196%2825%2900346-5/fulltext

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The bottom line is strong Muscles Means Life. Here's a short list explaining why: 

• Resistance and weight-bearing exercises stimulate bone density, which helps fight osteoporosis and fractures. Strong leg and core muscles—especially the glutes and quadriceps, for example —improve balance and stability to keep you upright.

• Strong leg and core muscles act as a natural braking system. If you trip, strong muscles catch you faster.

• But, should you fall, dense muscle protects your joints and bones. Lowering the chance of a fracture, like in the hips.

• Also, exercising muscles secrete signalling molecules called myokines that travel to your brain, liver, and fat cells, lowering chronic body inflammation, improving memory, and helping to protect against diseases like Alzheimer's and cancer. 

• Strong, active muscles pull sugar from your blood. Insulin acts as a key to letting sugar enter cells for energy, feeding your muscles and organs, and protecting you from insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease. If you are weak, sugar stays in the blood stream like a slow-acting poison that erodes your blood vessels. You might feel tired because sugar (which is energy) is in your bloodstream but not in your cells. Essentially starving your cells. You might have blurry vision because high sugar levels pull fluid out of the lenses of your eyes, changing their shape and making it hard to focus. You may frequently have to urinate because the kidney is working overtime filtering the excess sugar out of your blood and dumping it into your urine which will also... what? leave you feeling thirsty. 

 

When you are strong, daily activities take less energy, preventing exhaustion and frailty. ​Being strong means caring for your body so your cells stay fed and sugar does not stay in the bloodstream for months or years. Being strong is about stopping your body from "rusting" on the inside. Rusting is a very real possibility when sugar remains in your blood (as opposed to feeding your cells). Sugar in your bloodsteam (instead of in your cells) will chemically bond to your proteins and fats which will eventually destroy your blood vessels. This is the cause of severe chronic complications like heart attacks, strokes, kidney disease, blindness, nerve injury, neuropathy, slow-healing wounds ... and the list goes on.

 

We all know someone with any one or a number of these ailments. The data shows the urgency in narrowing the gap between lifespan and healthspan, between living long and living healthy. So, why not add to reversing those numbers? It is never too late to get fit, have energy and be agile.

 

We have one job to do. Why not do it well?​​​

 

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