Rejuvenate You

by Eric Johnson, Manager, Health Hutt

To live a healthy senior lifestyle is an art form! Many people over 60 become lazy and start feeling that now their age of enjoying life has gone. But a positive attitude and an active lifestyle have been proven to improve seniors' quality of life. Set your mind to think a new stage of life has just begun!

Renew enthusiasm to live life. Exercising, eating raw fruits and green leafy vegetables can give you the energy you need. This helps in shaping your body, but has other benefits that affect different aspects of your health. Have a positive mood and speak good things. Addressing nutritional deficiencies with supplements may help combat depression.

Of course, there are supplements that can help you also, such as green juice powders, tablets, and capsules. They help take toxins from the blood, acting like a magnet for pulling heavy metals such as aluminum, lead and mercury and excreting them out of the body.

For mental clarity, there are items that help such as Ginkgo Biloba (helps strengthen the mind/brain), Antioxidants (which include Vitamins A, C, E, Beta-carotene) help prevent oxidation which effects neural transmitting, and B Vitamins (B1, B6, B12, Folate) help improve cognitive functioning.

It is not your age that decides that you've grown older, but you. You can do the things that give you pleasure, such as swimming, gardening, walking, hanging out with friends and family, church groups and more. This will relax your mind, body, and soul, which can rejuvenate you.

Avoid high sugar or high saturated fat content food. Eat healthy food and make exercise an integral part of your routine, thus paving way for leading a healthy lifestyle.

Stop in today at one of the three locations of the Health Hutt for more suggestions and ideas for energy, strength and healthy living!

To ask about natural remedies or other vitamin supplements phone the Health Hutt closest to you. In Muskegon call (231) 739-1568. Be sure to watch "Forever Young" Wednesdays at 3:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. and Thursdays at 3:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. on Comcast Cable 97.

Get Started, Get Fit!

by Lana Carson, Nationally Certified Personal Trainer, Omni Fitness Club

Each month I write an article about the benefits of exercise. This month, I'm going to do something a little different. Instead of reading about exercise, what I would like to encourage readers to do - is actually do some exercise!

I would like to personally invite readers to the Omni Fitness Club to experience how simple and fun exercise can be! Don't wait any longer - now is the time to quit procrastinating and take advantage of this special invitation. You can do it! We know you can because we meet people just like you every day (new to exercise, a little nervous - ) who want take control of their health and fitness but have no idea how to get started - which is exactly where we come in.

The most difficult part of getting started, will simply be walking through the front door for the first time. "Fear of the unknown." However, as soon as you reach the front desk, your anxiety will dissipate because you will be greeted with a warm welcome that only the Omni Fitness Club can deliver. From that point on, you'll be matched with your own fitness coach who will design a personalized fitness program that meets your needs and interest.

As good as this offer may sound, there's one catch. If you're not ready to prioritize your health and fitness, if you're not sick and tired of being sick and tired - do not come to the Omni Club. It will be a waste of your time unless you are ready to make a personal commitment to yourself. That's it. A simple, but true "catch" to our offer.

So here's how you can get started. Go to www.Muskegonfreepass.com. That's it. It's that simple! From that point on, get ready to get in shape once and for all and forever.

We're looking forward to meeting you so come on, go to www.Muskegonfreepass.com and we'll see you soon!

If you would like help designing a fitness program that's just right for you, call MarySue or Lana at the Omni Fitness Club at (231) 739-3391.

Seniors Try So Hard to Hear They Forget What They Heard

from Hearing Wellness Center

Senior citizens with hearing problems may try so hard to hear they can't remember what they heard. That is what a study by Brandeis University researchers concluded.

The study, published in Current Directions in Psychological Science, showed that even when older adults could hear words well enough to repeat them, their ability to memorize and remember these words was poorer in comparison to other individuals of the same age with good hearing.

These older adults with mild-to-moderate hearing loss may expend so much cognitive energy on hearing accurately that their ability to remember what was actually said suffers as a result.

A group of older adults with good hearing and a group with mild-to-moderate hearing loss participated in the study. Each participant listened to a 15-word list and was asked to remember only the last three words. All words were delivered at the same volume. Both groups showed excellent recall for the final word, but the hearing-loss group displayed poorer recall of the two words preceding it. Because both groups could correctly report the final word, it was reasoned that the hearing-loss group's failure to remember the other two words was not a result of their inability to hear/correctly identify them. They were expending so much energy listening, they didn't remember what was said. This is similar to "multitasking." As the number of processes a person is involved in increases, their ability to do all of them well diminishes.

Hearing loss has been proven to diminish a person's social abilities. It would be natural for a person to appear confused if they are unable to remember all the parts of a conversation. Responses to what was said would not be accurate and can make the hard of hearing person appear less intelligent or ill informed.

With the new technology available today most hearing loss can be at least partially corrected. There's no reason to miss out on any part of life. Make an appointment with your doctor or audiologist today for a hearing screening.

Margaret M. "Peg" Sass-Simon, M.A., CCA-A, is a clinical/educational audiologist with Hearing Wellness Center, 6653 Grand Haven Road, Spring Lake. In Muskegon, call (231) 798-2323.