Where is your path in life going?

If you want to live longer there are some concepts that will help you. Deborah Mitchell in her book: Foods that Combat Aging provides many suggestions on aging well.

Here are a few tips:

1. Prevention: take steps right now to prevent the development of diseases. Proper nutrition is the key element of prevention

2. Integration: Combine the best of both worlds by looking into both conventional medicine and alternative/complementary medicine

3. Holism: Find a practitioner who treats you as a whole being. For example: A approach to arthritis of the hip to address all factors would include diet, exercise level, emotional health, supplements and pharmaceuticals.

Other Tips for Longevity:

1. Be sugar smart or call it- be carb smart!  Carbs come in 2 forms, simple and complex. Simple sugars include table sugar, honey, and refined sugars such as white rices, white flour, baked goods and refined pasta. Stay away from these as much as you can!

Concentrate on a diet with complex carbs such as brown or wild rice,  whole weat and whole grain bread, rolls and bagels. Include at least one or two servings of beans daily- lima, butter, white, pinto, black, soy, kidney or garbonzo. (1/2 cup is a serving.)

2. Get to know your fats. Good fats: monosaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids, a type of poly unsaturated fat. Stay away from saturated fats, trans fats and anything that says: partially hydrogenated. Good sources of monosaturated fats and omega -3 fatty acids include olive oil, acovadoes, salmon, walnuts, herring and olives.

Taken in part from: Mitchell, D. (2008). Foods That Combat Aging: The Nutritional  Way to Stay Healthy Longer. New York, NY. Harper-Collins