Five Aspects of Your Health You Should Monitor as You Age

Five Aspects of Your Health You Should Monitor as You Age

We all need to take care of ourselves and as we age we need to pay special attention to some specific aspects of our health.

Our bodies change as we get older and this is perfectly natural, however there are certain things we can monitor to give us an indication of our overall health and fitness. These simple and quick tips can help us better control mind and body throughout the years.

Blood pressure

How many adverts do you see on the television about blood pressure? That’s because your blood pressure is an important aspect of your day to day health. Most people will have high blood pressure at some point in their lives.

In fact, it's estimated that by age 55, those who don't already have high blood pressure face a 90% chance of developing the condition. It is a good idea to familiarise yourself with your blood pressure so you can easily monitor changes. Monitors are very cheap these days and many pharmacists can actually check this for your free.

Keep blood pressure low by eating and drinking well and practising relaxation. Notify your GP if any unexplained change occurs.

Pulse rate

Keeping a rough idea of your resting and active pulse rates will help keep you fit and healthy. What you need to know is the number of beats per minute – locate your pulse in your wrist or neck and use a simple clock with a second hand.

Generally, the lower your beats per minute, the fitter you are - unless you have a pacemaker or heart disease. Knowing your resting and active pulse rate gives you a great deal of information about your overall fitness levels and health.

Mobility

Monitoring your mobility is more vital than you would think. Just being in tune with your body and knowing your limitations can tell you lot about yourself as you age.

Keep track of what you can and cannot do and how things progress over time. Keeping a diary can help you track your mobility. As we age it is important we keep physically active but whatever age we are, we must only push ourselves within our limitations. Whether we are cycling instead of running in our 60s, or using chair lifts instead of stairs later on, we can all exercise and keep active within our limitations and still reap the rewards.

Mental capacity

Keeping our mind active is incredibly important. It doesn’t have to be rocket science, doing a daily crossword or Sudoku can help keep your mind working healthily. Try to do something that challenges your brain each day to keep it working and not just ‘ticking over’.

By doing these daily quizzes you should be able to monitor your abilities, be more self-aware and ultimately note any decline in your mental capacity before any problems occur.

Diet

Your diet is one of the most effective ways to keep healthy. Your diet helps fuel your mind and body.

Keep track of your diet and make sure that as your get older your diet stays as varied and as healthy as it was when you were younger.

Whatever your age, you are never too young to start enjoying a healthy lifestyle and taking on board the tips above – after all we will all get older, the more we look after our bodies now, the more they will look after us later on.