Unfortunately, many things that we enjoy in our youth pose serious threats to our lives when we reach the age of 60. To prepare yourself and remain as healthy as ever, here are 17 habits we wish we could continue doing after 60, but we can’t.
Attending Concerts
As avid music lovers, the live performances of our favorite artists never get old or boring. However, after the age of 60, it becomes too stressful and unhealthy to deal with the loud noises, long standing hours, and crowded spaces commonly associated with concerts.
Traveling Long Distances
Long-distance travel is an exciting adventure in our youth, especially if we’re visiting loved ones or going on vacation. However, after hitting old age, we’re at a higher risk of dehydration, fatigue, and developing fatal blood clots, making long-distance travel more hassle than it’s worth.
Consuming Alcohol
Alcohol affects you more as an older adult, and while a drink now and then is safe, it’s better to completely avoid it. Why? The University of Rochester says complications like diabetes, high blood pressure, liver disease, and ulcers accompany alcohol consumption in old age.
Engaging in Extreme Sports
Popular high-impact, high-risk sports like American football, soccer, downhill skiing, and gymnastics put too much strain on the muscles and joints and expose seniors to debilitating injuries. To remain physically and mentally engaged, it’s best to stick with softer, safer sports like swimming, croqueting, and cycling.
Lifting Heavy Weights
Much like extreme sports, lifting heavy weights is terrible for our elderly joints, muscles, and bones. Rather than expose yourself to unnecessary injuries and cardiovascular complications, lift lighter weights and opt for exercises like chair yoga, tai chi, and water aerobics.
Driving
Driving isn’t an absolute no-go area for seniors, but when you have mobility, vision, or hearing-related problems like arthritis, cataracts, and hearing loss, you put everyone on the road in danger, including yourself. The CBC points out that it’s also hazardous to drive with elderly ailments such as dementia.
Eating Spicy Foods
There’s a psychological, burning reason we love spicy foods so much, and spice’s active component, capsaicin, plays a huge role in this. Sadly, while capsaicin is great for adults around the age of 40, its consumption is said to increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and cognitive decline in older adults.
Partying All-Night
Raving through the night with friends and family is a liberating, powerful stress reliever that we wish could continue forever. Sadly, for seniors, there’s a chance that it worsens conditions like hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, and respiratory disorders, especially if noise levels and alcohol consumption aren’t controlled.
Having Full-Time Jobs
Many of us enjoy the work we do and would continue working well into our 60s, 70s, and even 80s if we could. However, despite the financial and social allure of it, there are barriers concerning your physical health, cognitive abilities, work-healthcare-life balance, and finding supportive work environments that make working difficult.
DIY Home Renovations
Repairing and upgrading parts of your home yourself is a great way to save money. However, as you age, you have to reconsider whether saving money is enough justification to go through physical strain, put yourself at risk of debilitating falls, or interact so closely with toxic materials like asbestos.
Keeping Up With New Technology
Ken Dychtwald reveals to the New York Times that “new technologies are largely oriented to people under the age of 50.” This means that as much as we want to keep up with technology, we have to deal with products that aren’t entirely tailored to us. Personally, we think that’s ageism!
Wearing Heels
Heels are uncomfortable for a reason—they disrupt the form of your body and force you into unnatural postures. As a senior, high heels expose you to higher risks of developing new foot problems, and they worsen existing joint pain. So, they’re best avoided, even if you enjoy wearing them.
Dining at Fast Food Joints
Cleveland Clinic explains how fast food items raise your blood pressure and put you at risk of heart disease. When you reach the age of 60 or older, it’s, sadly, a necessity to replace fast food diets with homemade, balanced diets to put off these health complications.
Keeping the Same Social Circle
Many of us love to have a tight-knit group of friends, but the sad reality of life is that we can’t be together forever. It’s important that, as we grow into our senior years, we make new connections that keep us away from social isolation, loneliness, feelings of despair, and depression.
Skipping Medical Checkups
Healthcare is expensive, and when you’re young, you boycott regular medical checkups to save money. You can’t keep doing this at 60, though. Old age comes with a plethora of health conditions that are easier to manage in their early stages, making regular checkups a necessity to remain healthy.
Dying Your Hair
Dyes are fun ways to experiment with your hair as you age. The problem, however, is that some dyes have ingredients with carcinogenic properties, as the New York Times reports. Considering that seniors are up to 11 times more likely to develop cancer, it’s safer to stay off hair dyes at age 60.
Taking Soda
Finally, soda and other sugary foods, like candies, pastries, and baked goods, expose you to higher risks of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease as a senior. Despite how much you may love them, you’ll have to quit sugary foods in place of fresh juice and low-sugar desserts like oatmeal cookies. They’re still delicious, though, so not all is bad!
Up Next: 19 American Foods that Are Not Allowed in Other Countries
We can debate all day about who has the safest food supply in the world. Though, I’d bet you would be surprised at how many everyday American foods are banned in other countries. Most are due to chemical additives and pesticides, which, in places like the EU, cannot be approved for use unless proven safe. Let’s take a look at 19 of them.
19 American Foods that Are Not Allowed in Other Countries
19 Things That Will Happen When You Stop Drinking Alcohol
Whether you identify as an alcoholic or a casual drinker, alcohol can have a significant negative impact on your health. This is why more and more people are choosing to go cold turkey for the sake of their well-being. If you’re considering going sober but need a little more convincing, we’ve got you covered. Here are 19 things that will happen when you stop drinking alcohol.
19 Things That Will Happen When You Stop Drinking Alcohol
17 Things Guests Actually Notice Right Away About Your House
Inviting people into your home is a big deal. You may be very house-proud or house-conscious, and if you are either, you’ll likely get anxious about hosting. If this sounds like you, stop worrying and focus on the following 17 things that guests actually notice right away about your house.
17 THINGS GUESTS ACTUALLY NOTICE RIGHT AWAY ABOUT YOUR HOUSE