Senior Supple Sense For Aging Touts As Part Of National Senior Health And Fitness Day

Health And Fitness Day

Los Angeles Jewish Home for the Aging is calling for America's seniors to gain a renewed sense of physical and mental suppleness as part of National Senior Health and Fitness Day set for May 30, 2007.

Dr. Rick Smith, medical director of the Los Angeles Jewish Home for the Aging, cited the fact that 85 percent of seniors do not exercise on a regular basis despite evidence that it lowers their rate of Alzheimer's and dementia, heart disease, diabetes, colon cancer, high blood pressure and obesity.

"It's increasingly well-chronicled that we can reverse the aging process by 15 to 25 years," Dr. Smith said. "Exercise can also help you maintain your mobility and independence by keeping bones and muscles strong. It also promotes good balance and combats frailty."

Smith believes that such a philosophy is partly responsible for the fact that the average resident's age at the Home is a remarkable 90 years old. "Just as proper diet and engaging activities can help you live a more fulfilling life," he said, "physical activity will yield a multitude of physical, mental and psychological benefits."

These benefits of exercise often include:

-- Self confidence

-- Contentment

-- Social interaction

-- Improved sleeping

-- Mental acuity

-- Balance and flexibility

-- Cardiovascular function

-- Bone density

-- Gastrointestinal function

-- Reduced risk of disease, sickness and injury (by strengthening muscles and bones)

"Whether it's Tai Chi or tennis," Smith said, "physical fitness and a physically active lifestyle may be one of the most important contributions to healthy aging. At the Home we believe it's all about the mind, body and spirit. Exercise is one important way to make that happen."