ACCORDING to experts, the older adult stage generally begins during the ages of 60-65, and at that time, physical changes take place due to wear and tear on the body’s cells. That requires an ability to adapt and the disposition to incorporate certain everyday practices that help one to live longer.

One of those is to take another look at the importance of physical activity, with the goal of living a healthy life from every perspective and aspiring to a life of 120 years or more. But above all, to help in the body’s functioning in situations such as coronary risks and blood pressure.

The first condition to safeguarding health is a proper diet, during this and every stage of life. Both inadequate nutrition and obesity periodically lead to the death of many people. Keeping oneself in motion is the second norm to bear in mind. Excessive rest can weaken the muscles and slow down blood circulation.

It is not necessary to go to a gym to carry out appropriate physical activity: a daily walk of at least 40 minutes notably helps in keeping blood pressure and heart problems under control. Cycle rides, swimming, gardening, etc. are also good options for safeguarding cardiovascular health.

With aging, our veins and arteries become more sensitive and more predisposed to certain diseases, which is why vascular changes are common among the aged.

The arteries are those vessels that take blood to the rest of the body: they are the major distributors of the blood that irrigates our bodies. Veins are the vessels that take blood from everywhere in the body to the heart, and constitute a collective network.

The aging of veins and arteries is characterized by the widening of vessels. Changes take place within their inner layers, causing hardening and a decrease in the internal light that arteries need for increased blood pressure, which, when manifested persistently, is called hypertension, or high blood pressure.

Hypertension is a very important risk factor in every type of cardiovascular disease, including cerebro- and cardiovascular incidents.

To the same measure that confidence is growing in the world in people’s ability to lengthen their lives and even aspire to a future in which they may live to be 120, more people are contemplating the benefits of physical activity. It is one way of promoting an active lifestyle to reach that goal. The World Health Organization (WHO) makes particular emphasis of the need for today’s men and women to abandon sedentarism and choose healthier lifestyles so that they live longer and better.

It has been widely proven that sedentary lifestyles are an important cause of mortality, morbidity and disablement. According to the preliminary conclusions of a WHO on risk factors, sedentary habits are one of the 10 main causes of mortality and disablement in the world. Data from that organization reveals that approximately two million deaths per year may be attributed to lack of physical activity.

Sedentarism increases the causes of mortality and doubles the risk of cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes and obesity. It raises the risk of hypertension, weight problems, osteoporosis, depression and anxiety. Moreover, it is one of the risk factors for colon and breast cancer, among others.

Currently, the WHO is studying the percentage worldwide of diseases caused by 22 health-related risk factors, including sedentarism. For researchers, it is evident that lack of physical activity constitutes an serious public health problem that is affecting millions of people throughout the world – so easy to solve, but so complex in modern life.