Looking After Your Body: An Owner's Guide to Successful Aging

by Reader's Digest Association

Aging well used to mean "choosing your parents wisely." Not anymore. The results of a major nationwide study reveal that your lifestyle -- more than your genes -- determines your health as you get older, and that most "age-related" health problems are entirely preventable. That's great news -- if you take the right steps now to protect yourself from illness and pave the way to a long, enjoyable life. What's the trick to slowing the clock? It's the little things you do every day. For instance, simply taking a daily multivitamin can help boost your immune system, counter depression, and lower your risk of heart attack and stroke. And a mere 20 minutes of exercise a day can mean the difference between developing a chronic disease like diabetes or avoiding it. Researchers have also discovered that people with strong social ties live longer and get sick less often.

Chock full of surprising insights and practical advice, Looking after your Body is your hands-on head-to-toe guide to preserving your mental and physical well-being. In Part I, you'll learn how to use diet, exercise, vitamins, and herbs to best advantage. Highlights include mouth-watering recipes, a complete fitness program, and a six-week stop-smoking plan, plus challenging brain games and smart tips on weight loss and stress relief. Part II covers common "age-related" ailments, from arthritis to varicose veins, including how to cope with them and -- most important -- how to prevent them. (Did you know that eating fish once a week can slash your risk of heart attack? That regular exercise may help stave off Alzheimer's disease?)

You'll take quizzes to rate everything from your diet to your emotional health, then find out how to raise your score. And you'll read important words of warning. (Did you know that if you're too sick to eat, you shouldn't take Tylenol?) Don't wait to see what toll the aging process will take. Instead, take control now and head off health problems before they start. It's easier than you think.

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You know how old you are, but how old do you feel? Let's face it: Aging is inevitable. But infirmity isn't. In fact, new myth-shattering research reveals that it's your lifestyle - more than any other factor - that dictates whether you age successfully or experience the "age-related" aches and ailments so many people suffer. Believe it or not, the choice is yours. By taking small steps (like changing what you eat for breakfast), you can avoid the major - and minor - health annoyances that take the zest out of living. And it's never too late, or too early, to begin. LOOKING AFTER YOUR BODY will show you how. Packed with the latest information and valuable health hints, it's your action guide to feeling good, looking great, and staying well for the rest of your life.


(taken from book cover)

Genres: Health, Nonfiction

416 pages, Hardcover

Published December 31, 2001

About the author

The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. is a global media and direct marketing company based in Chappaqua, New York, best known for its flagship publication founded in 1922, Reader's Digest. The company's headquarters are in New York City, where it moved from Pleasantville, New York.

The company was founded by DeWitt and Lila Wallace in 1922 with the first publication of Reader's Digest magazine, but has grown to include a diverse range of magazines, books, music, DVDs and online content.