(Akiit.com) Aging is something that we all have to come to terms with at one point or another. It’s a fact of life that we can’t avoid. Eventually, time will catch up with you. Yes, it’s true, some people age fast while others seem to have a picture in their attic, but it takes us all eventually. There’s no escape and no way to avoid it, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t prepare for it. There are lots of things that you can do that make accepting and embracing aging easier. Let’s start by thinking about how to stay younger for longer. That’s the ultimate goal, isn’t it? You want to look young, feel young and generally have the energy that you knew as a teenager.
The Secret Of Youth
The secret of youth can be divided into a few different sections. Let’s start by thinking about looking young. You need to think about your skin, your body shape, your hair and your smile. Cover these bases and people will always take about a decade off when guessing your age.
Believe it or not, every one of these factors can be impacted by your diet. If you keep a good diet, you can ward off the signs of middle age spread, stop wrinkles developing, keep your hair thick and let the color shine through your skin. A good diet just means making sure that you get your five a day. You want a good supply of fruit and veg, and you need to aim to cut back on the carbs. Keeping a healthy diet will allow you to maintain your natural body shape. That’s another secret to looking young. You don’t want to have excess weight, but you don’t want to be too thin either. Both these body shapes age faster than others.
Of course, keeping the weight off isn’t just about your diet. You also need to think about getting a healthy amount of exercise. As you get older, you may want to consider less strenuous forms of exercise that will still help your physical fitness. Yoga is a great example of this. Practicing yoga each day, you may find that your body feels young and full of life. But, unlike say running, it doesn’t put a lot of pressure on your joints.
Next, consider your skin. Keeping your skin looking young is about protecting it for as long as possible. If you go out in the sun, make sure that you are using sunscreen. This will ensure that your skin doesn’t wear too quickly. You may also want to think about how much makeup you use. Less is more if you want your skin to look younger for longer. It is best to create a daily skin care routine especially if you are exposed to sun and pollution. Invest on products like neck creams and hydrating serums. If you really prefer wearing makeup on a daily basis, choose cosmetics with natural ingredients to avoid acne and wrinkles.
Finally, the teeth. Everyone knows that white, straight teeth resemble youth and beauty. But, forget about paying for that expensive whitening treatment. Instead, you just need to avoid any foods that stain your teeth such as coffee.
Financial Expectations
Although, it’s not just your looks that cause problems when you age. You also need to consider your finances. You must make sure that you are sensible with money when you are younger. This will ensure you have plenty to spare when you lose your permanent income. Don’t forget. Eventually, you will be relying on your pension to live on. The amount will depend on how well you have saved and invested over the years. Economic experts recommend that you aim to save roughly a quarter of your paycheck each month. By doing this, you should be able to save a nice little pension pot for yourself. It will allow you to retire earlier and live in luxury in what are supposed to be the best years of your life.
You do need to think about more than just saving your money. Saving is a good start, but what happens if the economy takes a turn for the worst as it often does. If that happens, then you can lose a lot of money seemingly overnight
One of the best forms of investment is property. By purchasing a piece of property, you can keep a lot of money safe and in one place. Even if the economy does dive, you’ll still have the cash that you have accumulated over the years. You can even use it to pay for your pension if you have not saved as well as you had hoped.
Remember, you will have a state pension when you retire. By saving a private pension, you are just giving yourself a nice extra, cushion of cash. It all depends on the quality of life that you want to lead when you retire. To save more, you need to improve your budgeting. Ideally, you are aiming to be in the situation where you are saving a few thousand each month when you are young.
Health And Dependence
The final issue of age is losing your independence due to deteriorating health. You have a lot of decisions to make surrounding this issue. You need to think about whether you can still live independently in your own home or if it would be better to be in a care facility. In a care facility, you can have all your needs catered for. But it can take time to get used to losing the dependence that you once had.
Care facilities have also produced controversy in the past. Evidence has arisen that patients have been mistreated and even neglected. If you have had an experience like this, you can talk to a nursing home abuse lawyer. They should be able to help you get justice and file a claim. It’s also worth pointing out that not all nursing homes have been accused of this type of conduct. There are plenty that give their patients a far better quality of life.
Don’t forget, you can continue to live at home as you age. But you may need to make some changes to your property. You might even want to think about relocating to a bungalow. This will be beneficial as it will avoid the struggle of climbing up and down stairs. You probably have no issues with this right now. But as you get older, it can become agony.
We hope you think about the effects of aging now so that you can plan for the future. Old age can seem like a nightmare, but it doesn’t have to be if you plan ahead.
Staff Writer; Peter Long