Today is your day Boomer! As I prepare for open heart surgery next week, Baby Boomer "health" is on my mind. There are 76 million of us in Canada and the US, and many of us are greatly concerned with our retired years being happy and healthy. With that in mind, here are the top 10 health concerns for Boomers. According to Dr. Christopher Cutter of Scripps Healthcare, Type 2 Diabetes is the biggest concern; he says diabetes "increases the risk of serious health problems, such as high blood pressure, vision loss, kidney disease, nerve damage, foot problems, amputation and cardiovascular disease". Number two is heart disease, which is my problem and the biggest killer of both men and women over 60; "heart disease risk falls significantly when people avoid tobacco use, control their blood pressure and cholesterol through exercise and a low-fat, low-sodium diet and maintain a healthy body weight." Cancer and Alzheimers are three and four, with depression in 5th place and "Sandwich Generation Stress" next. What is that? "In addition to caring for their own families, many boomers are caring for elderly parents. The stress of being a dual caregiver can be significant, especially on those who are also working, struggling financially or dealing with other challenges". Joint replacement comes in at number 7, with weakening bones next: "osteoporosis is mostly found in women 65 and older and men over 70. It occurs when the density and quality of their bones have significantly decreased. Often called a silent disease, many people with osteoporosis don’t know they have it until they break a bone". Coming last are flu, pneumonia, and still with us....COVID. What a list Boomers! Do your regular checkups, exercise, and be proactive. Cheers.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
Today is your day Boomer! Relaxing in my hot tub this morning, I had reflections of the 1970 CCR song "Lookin' out my Back Door". Yes, that kind of druggy, but catchy song, about the view of your backyard. Mine is spectacular: colourful sunrises, big ponderosa pines, cheer, apple, fir, and weeping willow trees, two mountains, sheep and chickens next door, two frolicking golden retrievers, beautiful green grass and what seems like a thousand birds...including quail, pheasant, chickadees, woodpeckers, and blue jays. And what else? Well....the quiet, the solitude, and the chance for reflection with no sirens, car noise, yelling people, or neighbours invading your privacy. It was...is...just beautiful, and I am so blessed to live in a rural area in BC's Okanagan Valley. Boomers, what's out your back door? John Fogerty's "tangerines and elephants" or something like my cheeries and coyotes? Check it out and appreciate the little things in life. Cheers...
Read more
Image
Today is your day Boomer! Booze is becoming a bummer Boomers! That's right, we are drinking less...way less, according to the researchers. In fact, drinking rates across Canada have just reached a 20-year low. Stats Canada numbers look like this: "On average, Canadians bought the equivalent of eight drinks per week between March 2024 and March 2025, down from 8.7 a year earlier and 9.7 a decade ago. Beer, wine, and spirits sales all fell in both dollar amount and volume. Ciders and coolers were the only category to grow in that time period."(cbc.ca) This trend is especially prevalent in younger people, who maybe are turned off by the high cost of alcohol, their increased use of cannabis, and the social trends of having fun without suffering the next day. I don't see any numbers for Boomers yet....but I bet we remain as a near-the-top consumer as we grew up with booze as a recreational mainstay. By the way, some so-called experts say we are now entering a "po...
Read more
Image
Today is your day Boomer! Baby Boomers, another health benefit is back! It is backward walking and the trend-often associated with the 1980s-is making a return as grey-haired wonders, like you and I, look for new-or-newish ideas to help keep us fit! According to cbc.ca, "walking backwards has shown that there's less impact on the joints by using these different muscles — and it can increase flexibility and even help alleviate back pain." One 62-year-old Boomer says "Every time I walk, I just do a little twirl and walk backwards for a bit, and I'll do it just a few times during my walk." It may look a little unusual and may get a few laughs from passersby....by consider the actual benefits. Clinical exercise specialist André Noël Potvin says "When you start to walk backwards, you actually start to rebalance the forces around the ankle, knee, hip and lower back." This really helps Boomers recovering from knee surgery and older Boomers who are havi...
Read more