Asking people to speak up -- or feeling compelled to pretend you heard something you didn't -- is not the way most people want to spend their retirement years.
But there may be something you can do to help slow the kind of hearing loss that comes with an accumulation of birthday candles and gray hairs: Take folic acid. Just how much do you need?
The Wonderful World of Aging Ears
There are many wonderful things about growing older (here's a great example), but losing your hearing isn't one of them. So it was good news when one study showed that a group of men and women between the ages of 50 and 70 helped put the brakes on hearing loss by taking 800 micrograms of folic acid daily for 3 years. But there are two important caveats for these findings: The research took place in a country where foods are not regularly fortified with folic acid, and the benefit to hearing was observed with only low frequency sounds.
Folic acid helps lower homocysteine, a possible culprit in some kinds of hearing loss. (Initially, all the men and women in the study had elevated homocysteine levels.) It could also be that folic acid helps boost blood circulation to key ear structures involved in age-related hearing loss. Find good food sources of folate.
How Much Do You Need?
Fortunately, many products in the U.S. are fortified with folic acid, from breads to cereals to pasta, so you probably get at least a few hundred micrograms from your diet. But it's likely you'll need a supplement to reach the RealAge Optimum dose of 700 micrograms per day. Just be sure to stay below 1,000 micrograms per day, especially if you're over 65; as you get older, folic acid could mask a vitamin B12 deficiency.
A Good Reason to Look on the Bright Side
Anxious, angry, depressed? We all feel bad sometimes. But there's one very vocal objector: your heart.
People who often get swallowed up by these and other negative moods may have a higher risk of heart disease -- even if they're otherwise healthy. But you can turn any mood around with a few simple steps.
Social Stress, Troubled Ticker
Social anxiety may have the greatest impact on heart health. In a study of healthy older men, those who scored highest on a negative-emotion scale -- especially on social anxiety measures -- had the greatest incidence of heart disease 3 years later. (Love your life! Here are five ways.)
Build Yourself Up
If stress and anxiety have taken hold of you and won't let go, something really structured like cognitive-behavioral therapy -- alone or coupled with medication -- may help improve your sense of control and boost your confidence. Here are a couple more feel-good or feel-calm techniques:
- Controlled breathing (Here's how to do it.)
- Muscle relaxation (Learn the technique with these tips.)
Three a Day Does Your Body Good
Oatmeal at breakfast, brown rice at lunch, and a slice of whole-wheat bread at dinner.
If these items made your menu today, you're well on your way to a reduced risk of dying from an inflammatory disease. Three servings of whole grains per day can slash your risk by more than 35 percent. What's an inflammatory disease, you ask?
The Common Thread
Inflammation. It's something that heart disease (know your risk), diabetes (could you have it and not know it?), colitis, rheumatoid arthritis (learn how to reduce flare-ups), and many other conditions have in common. But researchers suspect that the phenols, beneficial plant substances, and vitamins in good-for-you whole grains may thwart the disease-causing oxidative stress that results from inflammation. What's your whole-grain IQ? Find out here.
Also, Fabulous Fiber
Yet another reason to eat more whole grains: They're full of fiber, which can help you feel full longer (so you'll eat less) and can help keep your blood sugar levels steady and your digestive system on track. Are you getting enough? Answer these questions about your typical eating habits to find out.
Inflammation. It's something that heart disease (know your risk), diabetes (could you have it and not know it?), colitis, rheumatoid arthritis (learn how to reduce flare-ups), and many other conditions have in common. But researchers suspect that the phenols, beneficial plant substances, and vitamins in good-for-you whole grains may thwart the disease-causing oxidative stress that results from inflammation. What's your whole-grain IQ? Find out here.
Also, Fabulous Fiber
Yet another reason to eat more whole grains: They're full of fiber, which can help you feel full longer (so you'll eat less) and can help keep your blood sugar levels steady and your digestive system on track. Are you getting enough? Answer these questions about your typical eating habits to find out.
Walk While You Work
Instead of sitting at your desk all day, wouldn't it be great if you could, say, walk in place at your computer and shed a few pounds?
That's exactly what researchers thought when they designed a workstation treadmill. They estimated it could help overweight people lose up to 66 pounds in a year. But because you won't find these far-thinking contraptions at your local Wal-Mart, here are a few realistic ways to make desk life less stationary.
Obese workers had to walk at a speed of only 1 mile per hour at the walk-and-work stations to burn twice the calories they normally did during a workday. And replacing just 2 or 3 hours of sitting with walk-and-work action could burn 44 to 66 pounds over the course of a year. Bottom line: Moderate activity matters. Here are some quick and easy ways to eke some exercise out of your workday:
- Spend half your lunch hour walking.
- Take three 10-minute walking breaks.
- Fidget (here's how it helps).
- Ask your employer about subsidizing memberships at local gyms.
Three a Day Does Your Body Good
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