Brooks Memorial Hospital - The Observer

LAURAN NEERGAARDAP Medical WriterWASHINGTON — Cancerand memory loss are babyboomers’ biggest healthfears. Given their weight,maybe heart disease and diabetesshould be.Boomers are more obesethan other generations, anew poll finds, setting themup for unhealthy senioryears.And for all the talk of “60is the new 50” and activeaging, even those who aren’tobese need to do more to stayfit, according to theAssociated Press-LifeGoesStrong.com poll.Most baby boomers saythey get some aerobic exercise,the kind that revs upyour heart rate, at least oncea week. But most adults aresupposed to get 2¢ hours aweek of moderate-intensityaerobic activity — things likea brisk walk, a dance class,pushing a lawn mower. Onlyabout a quarter of boomerspolled report working up asweat four or five times aweek, what the average personneeds to reach that goal.Worse, 37 percent neverdo any of the strength trainingso crucial to fighting themuscle loss that comes withaging.Walking is their most frequentform of exercise. Thegood news: Walk enough andthe benefits add up.“I have more energy, andmy knees don’t hurt anymore,”says Maggie Sanders,61, of Abbeville, S.C. She haslost 15 pounds by walking 4miles, three times a week,over the past few months,and eating better.More boomers need toheed that feel-good benefit.Based on calculation of bodymass index from self-reportedheight and weight, roughlya third of the baby boomerspolled are obese, comparedMedical Directory 2011with about a quarter of botholder and younger responders.Only half of the obeseboomers say they are regularlyexercising.An additional 36 percentof boomers are overweight,though not obese.The nation has been bracingfor a surge in Medicarecosts as the 77 million babyboomers, the post-war generationborn from 1946 to1964, begin turning 65.Obesity — with its extra riskof heart disease, diabetes,high blood pressure andarthritis — will further fuelthose bills.“They’re going to beexpensive if they don’t gettheir act together,” says JeffLevi of the nonprofit Trustfor America’s Health. Hepoints to a study that foundMedicare pays 34 percentmore on an obese senior thanone who’s a healthy weight.About 60 percent ofboomers polled say they’redieting to lose weight, andslightly more are eating morefruits and vegetables or cuttingcholesterol and salt.But it takes physical activity,not just dieting, to shedpounds. That’s especiallyimportant as people start toage and dieting alone couldcost them precious muscle inaddition to fat, says JackRejeski of Wake ForestUniversity, a specialist inexercise and aging.Whether you’re overweightor just the right size, physicalactivity can help stave off themobility problems that toooften sneak up on the sedentaryas they age. Musclesgradually become flabbieruntil people can find themselveson the verge of disabilityand loss of independence,like a canoe that floats peacefullyuntil it gets too near awaterfall to pull back, Rejeskisays.He led a study that found amodest weight loss pluswalking 2 1/2 hours a weekhelped people 60 and oldersignificantly improve theirmobility. Even those whodidn’t walk that much gotsome benefit. Try walking 10minutes at a time two orthree times a day, he suggests,and don’t wait to start.“I don’t think there’s anyquestion the earlier you getstarted, the better,” saysRejeski, who at 63 has givenup running in favor of walking,and gets in 30 miles aweek. “If you allow yourmobility to decline, you payfor it in terms of the qualityof your own life.”When it comes to diseases,nearly half of boomers polledworry most about cancer.The second-leading killer,cancer does become morecommon with aging.“It’s the unknown nature,Page 25Obesity hits more boomers than others in U.S.that it can come up withoutwarning,” says Harry Forsha,64, of Clearwater, Fla., andMill Spring, N.C.Heart disease is thenation’s No. 1 killer, but it’sthird in line on the boomers’worry list. Memory loss is abigger concern.“On a scale of one to 10,seven or eight,” is how BarryHarding, 61, of Glen Burnie,Md., puts it. “It’s more talkedabout now, Alzheimer’s anddementia.”In fact, more than half ofboomers polled say they regularlydo mental exercisessuch as crossword puzzles.After Harding retires, heplans to take classes to keepmentally active. For now,he’s doing the physical exercisethat’s important forbrain health, too. He alsotakes fish oil, a type of fattySee OBESITY, Page 27