A healthy lifestyle goes hand in hand with a healthy diet, and that’s particularly true for older adults. As we get older, the body’s ability to absorb and use nutrients decreases, so it’s more important than ever to make sure the food we’re eating is working as hard as possible to help keep us healthy, active and well.
“Older individuals need to eat fewer calories than younger individuals, but those fewer calories need to work a lot harder,” says Fred Kelly, Executive Director of Bridges® by EPOCH at Lexington. “Beyond supplying bodies with nutrients, a healthy diet helps improve immune systems, boosts cognitive function and helps reduce the risk of diseases like cardiovascular disease and certain forms of cancer.”
Heart disease is a huge problem for seniors. It’s the number one cause of death in the United States, and seniors are more likely to have heart problems than younger Americans. Heart disease can lead to a variety of physical complications such as disability, stroke and others. One of the leading causes of heart disease is high cholesterol levels.
Managing cholesterol can greatly affect your heart health and ability to remain well as you age. In honor of National Cholesterol Education Month, we’ve laid out some information about cholesterol as well as tips and tricks for managing yours, no matter what age you are.
Cholesterol 101
As you probably know, if you’ve had a comprehensive blood test recently, there are two different kinds of cholesterol: “bad” cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein, or LDL) and “good” cholesterol (high-density lipoprotein, or HDL). Lipoproteins are proteins that travel through your blood, and cholesterol migrates to them in order to travel through your body as well.
LDL makes up most of the cholesterol in your body. High levels of LDL raise your risk for issues like stroke and heart disease, so you want to make sure your “bad” cholesterol levels are low. Too much LDL in your body for too long a time will build up cholesterol plaques on your blood vessels. This, in turn, constricts and narrows the inside of your blood vessels, which can eventually lead to vascular issues, heart attacks or strokes.
On the other hand, HDL is a protein that absorbs cholesterol and carries it to your liver, where it’s processed and flushed out of your body. Having a high HDL level, then, is a good thing.
Monitoring your LDL and HDL is incredibly important as we age since our cholesterol levels tend to naturally elevate as we get older. Since there are no outward warning signs of dangerous cholesterol levels, monitoring those levels is essential – otherwise, the only way you’ll know if cholesterol is a problem is if you suffer a medical emergency.
It’s very easy to monitor your cholesterol. Your doctor simply needs to perform a blood test, which will measure your total cholesterol, levels of “good” and “bad” cholesterols, as well as triglycerides, which is a type of fat in your blood that can cause heart issues. Depending on your personal health record and family history, your doctor can provide medications and lifestyle changes that can better help you manage your various levels.
Cholesterol and Diet: You Are What You Eat
One of the most effective ways to manage cholesterol levels is by eating a healthy diet and getting plenty of regular exercise. Fat intake is essential to monitor for seniors because some fatty acids will raise your LDL levels, while some fats will lower them. Saturated fats and trans fats cause your liver to produce higher levels of LDL, so it’s important to limit your intake of fried foods, packaged foods, baked goods and other more highly processed foods. Unsaturated fats, like you find in nuts, seeds, beans, fish and vegetable oils, break down your bad cholesterol (and raise your HDL level), so it’s important to have a healthy amount of those types of fats in your diet.
Fiber is another element that can positively affect your cholesterol levels. An easy way to get more fiber in your diet is by eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables as well as whole and unprocessed grains. Fiber supplements can help if you’re not getting enough fiber in your diet naturally, but it’s generally believed that “natural” sources of fiber are better for you (and they’re also usually healthy foods that can help improve your overall health and wellness, too).
Lifestyle Choices
Besides diet, there are plenty of other lifestyle choices seniors can make to help moderate and manage cholesterol levels. Getting the proper amount of physical exercise is one of those choices. Experts recommend about 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity every week, which helps keep your cardiovascular system working well in addition to helping moderate weight, boost your immune system, improve mental health and help you stay healthy overall.
Other lifestyle choices that doctors recommend are quitting smoking and managing your alcohol intake. Both of these factors can have a huge impact on your cardiovascular system. Limiting salty foods and foods with extra sugar can also help with cholesterol levels.
“A holistic approach to heart health is the best way to manage cardiovascular systems and potential issues,” says Fred. “Not only will a healthy lifestyle boost your heart health, but it will help in your overall wellness and quality of life as well.”
Opening Spring 2022: A Fulfilling Lifestyle in Middlesex County, MA
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