Johns Hopkins Health - Summer 2009 - (Page 8)

TIME OUT Screenings Preventive health screenings can reveal potential problems early so they can be addressed. Aging experts recommend keeping tabs on the following: ◗ for Dental health Vision (glaucoma, macular degeneration, cataracts, etc.) Cardiovascular disease (blood pressure, cholesterol, hemoglobin A1c) Osteoporosis (via FRAX assessment and/or bone-density screening) Cancer (screening for breast, prostate, skin, colon and gynecologic cancers) Vaccinations (in uenza, pneumococcal, tetanus and herpes zoster) ◗ ◗ outside, they forget—or don’t know— that what’s occurring on the inside really is where the anti-aging work is done, or undone. And heed this: Most of it begins early. Very early. at’s because at least some of how— and how quickly—we age is determined by our genes. If you put two 40-year-old women MINAR side by side and, all other FREE SE FOR things being equal, one EATING BONES looks 10 years younger, NG STROWednesday, those are genes. en :30 p.m. er 30, 5 eptemb again, she also might be S ayview opkins B Johns H nter a candidate for osteoCe Medical porosis, heart disease or 82 -547-51 breast cancer. Call 800 gister. to re “ at’s the part that you can’t control,” Bellantoni says. “ ese are the genetic or inherited risks to healthy aging.” What We Can Control ◗ ◗ ◗ Talk to your doctor about when and how often you should be screened and whether there are other regular tests or screens you should get based on your family health history. Genes aren’t our only destiny, Bellantoni adds. ere’s more going on, including our environment, what we eat, our physical activity, our lifestyle and behaviors, whether we get regular checkups and health screenings, and our mental health. “ ose are the controllable factors that contribute to how successfully we age,” Bellantoni says. And they have a huge impact. Consider what Bellantoni refers to as “the new longevity” in America. Between 1900 and 1990, average life expectancy in this country increased from 47 years to 76. Only 58 percent of women born in 1900 lived to age 65. Today, that number is higher than 90 percent, and at least 50 percent of us will live to age 85. Watch the Bones | About 44 million Americans have osteoporosis and about 68 percent of them are women, says Johns Hopkins endocrinologist Deborah Sellmeyer, M.D. “If undetected and untreated, it can lead to fragility fractures, bone deformities and serious disability,” Sellmeyer says. Unfortunately, she adds, it’s usually not diagnosed until a fracture occurs. You can help keep osteoporosis at bay by getting the recommended daily requirements of calcium (1,200 milligrams) and vitamin D (8001,000 units), as well as doing bone-strengthening exercises. The U.S. Preventive Task Force recommends bone-density testing for some younger adults at risk for osteoporosis; for men and women who have had fractures after age 50; and for all women after age 65 (age 60 with risk factors). Visit hopkinsbayview.org/ bone to learn more. 8 | johns hopkins health summer 2009 800-547-5182 | hopkinsmedicine.org http://www.hopkinsbayview.org/bone http://www.hopkinsbayview.org/bone http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Johns Hopkins Health - Summer 2009

Johns Hopkins Health - Summer 2009
Contents
All Ears
Heady Issue
Aging Successfully
A Better Option
The Essential Gland

Johns Hopkins Health - Summer 2009

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