It Hasn’t Killed Me Yet

Should seniors care about their nutritional & physical choices?

We pondered life and death. He lights a cigarette. He said “These dang things will kill me yet;”
– “People Are Crazy” Billy Currington

So goes the second chorus of a popular song by country singer Billy Currington about his run in with an “old man” in a bar. It’s not an unfamiliar sentiment, certainly Billy didn’t come up with it because I’ve heard many individuals myself rationalize what they suspect may be harmful by saying “hasn’t killed me yet.” Or has it?

Today as I was reading through two different articles I realized that though the topics were different, one on women being more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than men and the other on the affects of weight and aging the underlying theme the same. The lifestyle choices we make today do directly impact our health tomorrow.

Diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension, some cancers, stroke, heart disease all have poor nutrition and sedentary lifestyle choices as possible attributing factors. They’re risks we all run if the proper precautions are not taken. Some individuals will face a higher likelihood given a genetic predisposition they may possess.

Many older American’s tend not to care however. It could be possible that complacency in their current state enables them to remain where they feel comfortable. Or maybe they’ve existed in a symptom ridden lifestyle for so long that they forget what it’s like to truly feel good. My saddest suspicion of all is they’ve accepted their fate and will merely bide their time.

As I sit at my desk reflecting over clients I’ve met in the past I can’t help but wonder how different their stories would look if they had chosen to care about what they put in to their body? Or would they change the course of their disease progression if they were to make tweaks to their diets, focusing on nutrition rich foods and making time for exercise appropriate to their condition? I would like to think it’s never to late to begin to make healthy choices.

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