Environments for Aging - Winter 2017 - 28

Be well

Today's seniors are looking for communities that support their well-being and foster
continued growth and learning, and two of the EFA Expo & Conference keynote
speakers will tackle how to promote healthy lifestyles for all By Anne DiNardo

in whatever change we want to effect ... it
just may take a little longer. Finally, there's
a lack of understanding of how significantly
some lifestyles can affect our health and
aging experience. For instance, a sedentary
lifestyle, which more and more of us live
today, is associated with risks as high as
smoking. Social isolation is extremely destructive, leaving us at high risk for chronic
disease, and living without meaning and
purpose is also associated with very high
risk for decline.

KEYNOTE

Dr. Roger Landry

Preventive medicine
physician, author, and
cofounder of Masterpiece
Living
Environments for Aging: You describe
your book "Live Long, Die Short: A
Guide to Authentic Health and Successful Aging" as a roadmap to aging
in a better way. What are common
misconceptions people have about
aging?
Dr. Roger Landry: The most notorious
one is that we have little control over how
we age, that we are victims of our genes.
The research data is clear: Lifestyle determines up to 70 percent of how we age. In
fact, recent work in genetics has spawned
a whole new field of epigenetics, which
has demonstrated that our lifestyle can
put some of our potentially troublesome
genes to sleep. Another common misconception is that we can't make significant
lifestyle change. If we use a small-change
approach, we can, in fact, always succeed
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EFAmagazine.com * Winter 2017

What are the characteristics of an
environment that promotes healthy
aging?
Well, first of all, it cannot be cookie cutter or
institutional. The new older adult wants the
feeling of a customized environment and a
community that offers choice and variety,
and generates a feeling of pride. They want
places that foster physical movement, such
as walking, yoga, swimming, and strength
training, but above all, moving versus sitting. They want a community that nurtures
learning and new experiences, and will-by
design-bring people together for a variety
of purposes and will stimulate engagement with all generations and with the
larger community. A
lifestyle that's all about
continuing to grow is
one that's associated
with a better aging
experience and one
that's more likely to be
where we live long and
die short.

even the 100-plus are rapidly growing
segments of our population. Most Americans will choose, oftentimes because of
limited options, to remain in their homes.
Therefore, our towns and cities are already
being challenged to accommodate this
demographic shift. How do we provide not
only living arrangements but services that
offer them what they want: experience and
the opportunity to grow and be all they can
be for as long as possible? With healthcare
costs for older adults continuing to rise, it's
critical, for quality of life and for the soundness of our economy, to provide opportunities to live a lifestyle that's been shown to
reduce the occurrence of chronic disease.
It's a challenge for each community to
assess what is currently available, the
barriers that exist, and the best practices
already proven to address this lifestyle
transition.
What's one takeaway you want EFA
Expo attendees to go home with from
your presentation?
It's no longer a matter of getting ready for
the next generation of older adults. It's happening now and the senior living communities that will thrive will be those that recog-

A lifestyle that supports
continual growth is tied to a
better aging experience.

You've gone beyond senior living
communities to also challenge cities,
towns, and organizations to become
places that maximize well-being and
allow older adults to continue to grow
and learn. Why is that important?
In just 15-20 years, one in four Americans
will be over the age of 65. The 80-plus and

nize the immediacy of the requirement and
begin creating environments that empower
and enable continued growth. These communities will be more like universities, fostering and expecting growth in all aspects
of life. Yes, they'll continue to be places
that can support the care needs of seniors,
but they will be defined more by what they
prevent than what they accommodate,
more by growth than by maintenance, more
by adventure than by comfort.

http://www.EFAmagazine.com

Environments for Aging - Winter 2017

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