People these days put a lot of thought and financial planning into their retirement so that their “Golden Years” are truly golden. One thing that they don’t usually plan for, of course, are accidents resulting in disability or loss of independence. Falls are the top cause of accidents in people over 65 years of age and they are the main cause of serious injury and accidental death in older people. Over 30% of individuals over 65 will fall annually according to American family physicians. This percentage increases with each decade. Here are some helpful tips that will help you prevent falls in your “Golden Years”.
When I consult with patients about various health concerns, I always ask about medications and nutritional supplements. There often will be an extensive list of medications taken. Likewise, there will be a list of the supplements, which often includes aspirin. This is a problem because aspirin is NOT a nutritional supplement. Aspirin is a drug, albeit a non-prescription one, but a drug none the less. It is a foreign agent in the body which requires detoxification and could have negative consequences from its consumption.
Who is responsible for your health, you or your doctor? How you answer that question boils down to your philosophy of health. If you take an active role in educating yourself about wellness, lifestyle, and disease prevention, you will probably answer, “I am responsible for my own health.” If your philosophy is based on the “sick care” model, you may lean towards relying on your doctor. When illness or disease strikes, you go to your doctor for relief, oftentimes in the form of some prescription drug. You trust the doctor is making an educated judgment on how to “fix” the problem.
I got lost in the grocery store the other day. And it wasn’t because they re-arranged all the shelves again. My trips to the store usually take me “around the perimeter,” as they say, where you find more fresh foods and produce. Since I cook our meals from scratch, my grocery cart is almost exclusively loaded with fresh foods- particularly organically grown and raised.
