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Diet, exercise, and good sleep are exactly the kinds of things that make people less frail at 90 (or 60 or 50). If you’ve ever met someone who isn’t frail when

Diet, exercise, and good sleep are exactly the kinds of things that make people less frail at 90 (or 60 or 50). If you’ve ever met someone who isn’t frail when they are older it’s because they stayed active throughout their life. This doesn’t necessarily mean exercise, but it could mean doing lots of yard work, going on walks, etc. I’ve never met a chronic inactive person who moved well as they aged. We will need the pharma industry to treat Alzheimer’s and related conditions, but it is primarily lifestyle that we need to address to prevent it. Chronic lack of sleep will lead to all kinds of health issues, including dementia.

Teever 4y ago
> Diet, exercise, and good sleep are exactly the kinds of things that make people less frail at 90 (or 60 or 50). To a point. There are diminishing returns where genetics begins to play more of a factor. For many people no amount of exercise is going to help them when they're 90 because they'll die before they turn 90. Jim Fixx[0] is the perfect example of this Unless we develop a cure for Parkinson's disease I doubt Michael J. Fox[1] will live to 90, no matter how much exercise he does, because of the effects that disease has had on his body and the side effects from the treatments that he has received. Another way to look at it is to substitute 90 with 100, 110, or 120. Or to think about what kind of exercise and healthy eating tips that you would recommend to a person with Down's Syndrome to help them live to be 90. People who can should absolutely exercise and eat healthy food but that is no guarantee that they will live full healthy lives. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Fixx#Death https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Fixx#Death [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_J._Fox#Parkinson's_disease https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_J._Fox#Parkinson's_dis...
- _0w8t 4y ago
  I once looked at conditional lifespan data given that one reached a particular age. What was interesting that for India and Mongolia, countries with very different cultures, lifestyle, diet and climate, after 75 years the remaining lifespan was the same. Granted in both countries those who died after 75 lived presumably most of their life a traditional lifestyle with little influence of modern factors like junk food, TV at night, work stress etc. So we cannot conclude that those factors have no influence after 75th birthday. Still people should be rather skeptical about attributing to a particular factor really long life.
JackFr 4y ago
Increasing levels of dementia are likely being observed because we have healthier older people than ever before. Anecdotally I’ve known 3 people with severe Alzheimer’s who were extraordinarily robust - healthy in every other way into their eighties. In a earlier era they likely would have been dead before their dementia became incapacitating.

Teever 4y ago

> Diet, exercise, and good sleep are exactly the kinds of things that make people less frail at 90 (or 60 or 50). To a point. There are diminishing returns where genetics begins to play more of a factor. For many people no amount of exercise is going to help them when they're 90 because they'll die before they turn 90. Jim Fixx[0] is the perfect example of this Unless we develop a cure for Parkinson's disease I doubt Michael J. Fox[1] will live to 90, no matter how much exercise he does, because of the effects that disease has had on his body and the side effects from the treatments that he has received. Another way to look at it is to substitute 90 with 100, 110, or 120. Or to think about what kind of exercise and healthy eating tips that you would recommend to a person with Down's Syndrome to help them live to be 90. People who can should absolutely exercise and eat healthy food but that is no guarantee that they will live full healthy lives. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Fixx#Death https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Fixx#Death [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_J._Fox#Parkinson's_disease https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_J._Fox#Parkinson's_dis...

_0w8t 4y ago
I once looked at conditional lifespan data given that one reached a particular age. What was interesting that for India and Mongolia, countries with very different cultures, lifestyle, diet and climate, after 75 years the remaining lifespan was the same. Granted in both countries those who died after 75 lived presumably most of their life a traditional lifestyle with little influence of modern factors like junk food, TV at night, work stress etc. So we cannot conclude that those factors have no influence after 75th birthday. Still people should be rather skeptical about attributing to a particular factor really long life.

JackFr 4y ago

Increasing levels of dementia are likely being observed because we have healthier older people than ever before. Anecdotally I’ve known 3 people with severe Alzheimer’s who were extraordinarily robust - healthy in every other way into their eighties. In a earlier era they likely would have been dead before their dementia became incapacitating.