Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Some Sound Advice for a Healthy Old Age

Duck Confit at Chez Panisse

It’s rare to find a sensible article about healthy aging these days.  A recent article in the Washington Post is a rare exception.  The article is entitled, “The longevity files: A strong grip? Push-ups? What actually can help you live to a ripe old age.”  The author, Christie Aschwanden, sifts through the various claims, and explains why so many of the assertions about diet, exercise or other life style factors are likely to be exaggerated.  For example, why do people who do 40 pushups have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease?  The answer—people who can do 40 pushups are healthy enough to do them in the first place.

The message of the article, which we strongly agree with, is that there is no magic bullet, no specific exercise or diet or other lifestyle that will help us live longer and healthier.  But the article makes a strong case that there are some fundamental approaches that do help.  

First and foremost is exercise.  The benefits of regular moderate exercise are well-established for reducing the risk of illness.  Intensive exercise does not add any additional health benefits, but is more likely than moderate activities to lead to injuries.  Staying fit also means we can do more of the things we want and have better recoveries from illness or surgeries. 

Likewise, with diet, moderation is the key.  The claims of benefits of anti-aging diets and anti-aging foods are exaggerated.  The Mediterranean diet has gotten considerable attention for lowering cardiovascular disease, but the article and our own reading of the evidence suggests the effects are modest.   Maintaining a good weight (not too high, but also not too low) is also important for health

Other strategies mentioned in the article for sustaining health were being engaged in activities and
with other people, getting enough sleep, and lowering stress.  The claims about health benefits of red wine and other alcohol, however, were probably exaggerated.  People who had health problems were probably less likely to drink in the first place.  

The barrage of health claims in the media and on the web is likely to continue, along with articles that counter these claims.  Stories this past month reported on research that suggested that beef and pork and even cured meats are not actually bad for us.  The article has produced a firestorm of response in the public health field.  Scientists at Harvard are quoted as saying that the conclusions of the article “harm the credibility of nutrition science and erode public trust in scientific research.”  But the real conclusion is that weak research that makes sweeping claims about health benefits of a particular diet or exercise or life style erodes public trust, and really just confuses us all.  

That’s the conclusion that Aaron Carroll also makes.  Carroll, who is a researcher at Indiana University of Medicine, is our favorite writer on health issues.  Most writers report on findings that reinforce their beliefs, and most of us pay attention only to the headlines consistent with what we want to believe about healthy living.  Carroll is different.  He understands research and weighs the evidence carefully.  He provides balanced and thoughtful articles on health issues.  We have provided a link to his column on the red meat controversy and a couple other articles on the topic.

For Aaron: Carroll’s article on red meat:



 https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/14/upshot/diet-soda-health-myths.html