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No matter how old you are, a quick glance in the mirror tells you that your body changes over time. But while some differences, like gray hair and laugh lines, are inevitable, getting older doesn’t have to mean getting sicker. In fact, the choices you make starting now can increase your odds of enjoying vibrant good heath well into old age.
Prevention wasn’t always viewed as so important. In the past, maintaining good health took a backseat to disease treatment. Few visited the doctor for routine checkups or thought much about what could happen to their bodies — until it did. But times are changing.
As an increasing number of studies show that lifestyle measures like eating healthfully, exercising, and reducing stress have an enormous impact on the development of disease, mainstream medical experts are starting to take prevention more seriously. “Our health-care system still focuses largely on treating disease, but that’s begun to shift,” says Tracy Gaudet, M.D., director of Duke Integrative Medicine at Duke University and a Body+Soul columnist. “It’s becoming more apparent how important it is to be proactive with our health.”
That’s easier than you might think. Prevention doesn’t call for a daily regimen of knocking back wheatgrass juice at dawn, running five miles at lunch, and meditating for an hour after a dinner of barley and raw kale (unless you want to). Protecting your heart, brain, breasts, bones, and the rest of your body can be as tasty as a bowl of blueberries, as enjoyable as hiking in the woods with a friend, and as easy as taking a deep breath. Here, our experts have helped us compile a guide to keep you in top shape, from head to toe.
First Published: September 2008
