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Healthy aging: how to live your best life after 65

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Two older people are riding a lime green motorized scooter and having the time of their life.

The need for healthy aging has never been more pressing. By the year 2030, one in five people will be age 65 or older and by 2034, will outnumber children for the first time in U.S. history. How can we ensure the quality of those golden and twilight years are marked by vitality and wellness?

The first step is to start by making wise lifestyle choices. One can maintain optimal physical and mental well-being later in life by following a healthy lifestyle.

“In the best-case scenario, we will see the squaring of morbidity, where people live at the highest level of function for as long as possible,” says Bahar Niknejad, M.D., (Internal Medicine/Geriatrics Residency '20 and Fellowship ’21), the Rosemary Fenton and Garnett Jordan Professor in Geriatrics and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at Old Dominion University.  “By doing this, we hope to decrease disability for older adults.”

Dr. Niknejad recommends these 5 things you can do today to start your healthy aging journey:

  1. Engage regularly in physical activities and exercise.
  2. Follow a balanced, healthy diet.
  3. Prioritize your mental well-being and exercise your brain with mental activities.
  4. Keep an active social life.
  5. Get regular health check-ups and screenings recommended for your age and gender.

Those who fail to manage chronic diseases and make risky life choices could jeopardize their longevity and experience pre-mature functional and cognitive impairment, resulting in a loss of independence. This can strain family relationships, impact financial stability and social interactions. Consequently, individuals may suffer from a lower quality of life and decreased life satisfaction due to health problems, dependency, and isolation.

Everyone aged 65 and older can benefit from consulting a geriatrician and by focusing on a healthy aging lifestyle.

The team at the EVMS Healthy Aging Geriatrics Consultation Clinic is here to help you work toward your goals of healthy aging. Providers and staff, including Dr. Niknejad, perform comprehensive geriatric evaluations on each patient using the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s Age-Friendly 4M framework – Mobility, Mentation, Medication and What Matters Most – to tailor recommendations to patients and their primary care providers. Through their focus on the 4Ms, they are able to offer quality healthcare to support successful aging.

“Everyone has unique needs,” says Dr. Niknejad, “and our goal is to help each older adult optimize their quality of life, address medical conditions and effectively manage chronic diseases.”

To connect with a geriatrician at our EVMS Healthy Aging Geriatrics Consultation Clinic, call 757-446-7040 to schedule an appointment.