Healthy tips for the elderly

There is no universal health formula that applies to all elderly people. The most effective method is always a personalized plan that suits your body, habits, and personality. It is much more effective than buying tens of thousands of health products or copying a 10,000-step list that you follow the trend.

I met Uncle Zhang from the community a while ago. He is 72 years old and has type 2 diabetes for 10 years. In the past two years, he watched short videos and saw people saying, "You don't have to worry about your blood sugar if you walk ten thousand steps a day." Regardless of the degenerative disease in his knees, he walked for three months and his blood sugar dropped by 0.2. His knees hurt so much that he couldn't go downstairs. Later, we adjusted the plan for him, which included doing Yang's Tai Chi for 20 minutes every morning, and walking slowly for 15 minutes while supporting the flower bed in the community after each meal. Now his blood sugar is stable between 6 and 7, and his knees no longer hurt. You see, it’s the same sugar control movement. It’s a secret when applied to others, but it almost caused a big problem when applied to him.

There are two health schools that are quarreling on the Internet right now. One says to be "moving" and the other is to be "quiet." In fact, they both make sense. No one is right or wrong. If you love liveliness and have no problem with your joints, going out to square dance or playing croquet with your old friends every day, as long as you are not tired, is better than lying at home. But if you have severe coronary heart disease or have undergone joint replacement surgery, and you keep jumping around, isn't that asking for trouble? Previously, there was an Uncle Li in our community who had just had a heart stent. He heard people say that exercise is good, so he insisted on running a half-marathon. Fortunately, he was stopped by his family. If he did, the consequences would be disastrous.

Let’s talk about the diet that everyone is most concerned about. Nowadays, there is a fierce debate. One group says that we should go all-vegetarian to clear blood vessels, while the other group says that we should eat enough meat to supplement protein. In fact, it all depends on individual circumstances. Last year, there were several elderly people with hypoalbuminemia who were found to have hypoalbuminemia during physical examination in our area. When asked, they all listened to the "vegetarian health care" theory and dared not touch meat, eggs, and milk. One grandma Wang was the most exaggerated. She didn't eat a bite of meat for half a year, and her legs were so swollen that she couldn't even put on cotton trousers. Later, she followed the doctor's instructions and added a boiled egg every day, drank half a cup of milk in the afternoon, and ate a piece of lean pork as big as a palm at noon. The swelling subsided in two months, and she became more energetic. However, there are also elderly people with severe fatty liver and cholecystitis who feel pain after eating even two bites of meat. They can eat more stir-fried vegetables and multigrain porridge to feel comfortable, and there is no need to forcefully supplement protein.

Oh, by the way, there is another misunderstanding that is rarely mentioned: don’t take indicators too seriously. The first thing many elderly people do when they get up every day is to measure their blood pressure and blood sugar. If the blood pressure is 0.1, they will be so worried that they can't eat for the whole day. It's really unnecessary. As the elderly age, their organs naturally age, and it is normal for the indicators to fluctuate slightly. As long as it is within the safe range given by the doctor, don't be anxious. I have seen a 76-year-old man with high blood pressure for 20 years. He has been taking medicine on time and his blood pressure is controlled at about 140/90. He happily plays chess with others every day.

Don’t underestimate the impact of emotions on health. Nine out of ten elderly people I’ve met who are in good condition are big-hearted, either have their own little hobbies, or don’t like to be nosy. There used to be a 78-year-old Grandpa Chen who had been recovering from lung cancer for 5 years. He carried a camera everywhere to take pictures of birds every day. He went to live in the suburbs with his photography friends for two days every month. During the last review, the attending doctor praised him for being in better condition than many elderly people who were not sick. He said, "Every day I think about where to go to take pictures of beautiful kingfishers, and I have no time to think about myself as a patient." On the contrary, there are some elderly people who worry about their children buying a house and their grandchildren going to school every day. They get angry at the smallest things. They are not sick at all, but they are suffering from high blood pressure.

I have met thousands of elderly people in the past few years, and I have never seen anyone live comfortably by copying other people's health secrets. There is no universally applicable secret. To put it bluntly, it’s better than anything else: eat what you feel comfortable eating, do the exercises you feel comfortable doing, mind your own business more and have more fun. Follow your doctor’s instructions and take your medicines on time for review.