Turning 50 years old: what special cares should there be?

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Avoiding the appearance of new diseases is at our fingertips. We only should have healthy habits, moderate exercise, and a balanced diet

Special care does not mean that we must be afraid of turning fifty. However, when we turn 50, our body suffers certain alterations we have to face so that our life quality does not decrease due to health problems.

Leer en español: Llegar a los 50 años: ¿cuáles deben ser los cuidados especiales?

Avoiding new diseases that afflict our health is within our reach with healthy habits, moderate exercise, and a balanced diet that over the years admits less 'sins’.

Sleeping

Sleeping is one of the first alterations that we noticed when entering the fifth decade of our lives, because insomnia often begins to make part of our life without us noticing it. Without realizing it, we found ourselves counting sheep in the middle of the night and changing again and again without being able to fall into Morpheus' arms.

When reaching the golden age, a hormone called somatotropin or somatotrophin is no longer produced and this probably leads to a decrease in deep sleep. Frequently, sleep can be fragmented more often during the night, forcing the body to go to bed earlier to compensate for sleep lost due to interruptions, or perhaps taking a short nap during the day. In this way sleep disorders, insomnia, and awakening tired will be avoided.

Generating habits before going to bed such as taking a bath, getting away from electronic devices, reading or playing music is a great help to have happy, deep, and repairing dreams.

The weight

Another condition that is suffered over the years when entering the fifth decade is the increase in weight. It is common to hear those who enter this stage saying phrases like, "If I eat that, I will notice it the next day."

In the case of women, the decline in the production of estrogen, the main female hormone, also responsible for menstruation, leads to other symptoms such as increased body fat. Scientific studies show that 75% of women increase their weight between 5 and 10 kilos to enter that stage of life that is accompanied by intense sweating, palpitations and emotional changes.

In the case of men, it is exactly the same, the fall in the production of testosterone produces the decrease of sexual desire, loss of strength and energy and, of course, muscle mass is replaced by body fat.

Also read: Being vegan is not always being healthier 

How should you take care of yourself?

The good news is that the only thing in life that has no remedy is death because, for those who are entering the golden age and see how their health is weakened and changes in their body afflict some of the tasks performed in the youth, there are alternatives that can contribute to the increase of the quality of life.

The name of our great adversary is: "free radicals", which are nothing more than an atom with an electron that is not rigged and, therefore, makes them highly unstable. To achieve the balance required by that atom, it steals an electron from another nearby atom, stabilizing it and generating destabilization in which it was the victim of the theft. This causes a chain reaction that damages the cells and causes aging and some diseases.

However, to overcome this, there are antioxidants, which are present in a number of foods. These usually tend to please most people, it's just a matter of adapting to a good diet that contains vitamins C, E and Beta Carotene and the minerals selenium, zinc, manganese and copper.

Melons, strawberries, carrots, spinach, asparagus, dark chocolate, red wine and red fish are just some of the many foods that provide us with antioxidants that can stabilize free radicals, "giving them" an electron and thus prevent the acceleration of the old age.

Also read: Planetary health: scientists create a sustainable and healthy diet 

Now, maybe hypertension is the staunchest enemy we have when we approach 50 years old. High blood pressure is one of the risk factors for higher cardiovascular disease for those over 50. In these cases, the best we can do is to restrict the intake of salt and alcohol to the maximum, take a healthy diet, and exercise every day in a moderate way. Doctors also recommend some effective drugs to control high blood pressure, which have a 95% success in treatments for their control.

For those women who want to keep looking attractive legs, avoiding so-called "spider" that precede the varicose veins, daily cardiovascular exercises are the best solution. Walking, jogging, riding a static or mobile bike, and avoiding excessive lifting contribute to the fact that miniskirts do not go out of style when the golden anniversary of birth is celebrated.

Anyway, all these conditions and special care that we should have with our body can be avoided with a regular and periodic check to take preventive measures in the event of complications and to slow down the relentless advance of the seconds hand.

LatinAmerican Post | Alberto Castaño
Translated from "Llegar a los 50 años: ¿cuáles deben ser los cuidados especiales?"