MIDDLE AGE

Evening Post, Volume CXVII, Issue 46, 23 February 1934, Page 16

MIDDLE AGE

HYGIENIC ADJUSTMENT

RULE OF MODERATION

(Contributed by the Department of

Health.)

It is ; n6t the'design of the author of this contribution, fctates : Surgeon-General' H. S. Cumming, United States tublic Health Service,'' in • the official . health journal of the Society of Medical Officers of Health, London,'to point out the changes that may be characteristic for the.different age, periods or to lay- down "specific rules of. living to meet them.' In fact, the .early periods of infancy, childhood, youth, .and manhood .wilL be passed over, and the. advent of. middle; age, with its peculiar problems, will be briefly discussed. else may be said of these progressive bodily B changes,'by the time we reach middle age we realise "fully the truth which underlies them all, and; which we express in the term' "growing jold." This process of; age, is in!, all likelihood very-elaborate and complicated, but one of its'obvious, and;: important .results is the gradual' replacement of our; body cells by connective- tissue^what^we might- call a ; sor(;,;? :ofjscarring;;probes^ . Thjs iiieans •■that^-'.ttie'i-iboi^-j'cells.v-uhde'rgof-a'-'-clirfnge,1 perhapss-both:in|quantityUn.d} in quality,' leaving'the" tissues v'and_ organs;'which they compose witli .less, "vigour'and less rec^per^iVeApower. ;;.::'^:-;iV,:; v •' ■'■■■> )•, (•' -3? }) ' MEN'T A L ;;ATT( TUDE: ' ]-' : ; \' ' ''.' '■' ."== When- ■' a - mart; begins to .reach middle age,, he,':perhaps7; f or? the -first time; fully appreciates what.-it >means to grow old: This/fact becomes ;,evident, in his consciousness in ways that he cannot ■overlook. : He begins to? notice .that his body is no longer capable of; doing.those .things which, previouslyvhe could do with' ease, and he.finds that his habits of life must bechanged if would maintain physical well-being. '. '' .-.'.•'. ' Thie * is; for many, Va difficult time, of life, and it. is; a. period when readjustments '■are' important. Briefly, it means that the individual must realise that he has passed' the' apex of his existence and is now oh the dowmyaid incline. Such a thought-implies a profound ment in his outlook upon life, sometimes with considerable ■ mental disturbance. Along with this mental adjustment there are not lacking indications which warn the individual that he must change his habits to conform to the. changes in his body. "He is* a wise person who realises air this and readjusts-himself accordingly, maintaining at'the same time the mental poise which accepts the inevitable without repining. :.-.'/ "-'.'••■•■-■ The mental attitude, is. important, and the emotional reaction is even more so. The old adage that a man is only as old as he feels expresses a good deal of truth There is no need for. gloom. A man of middle age, when knowledgo and experi; ence have ripened into at least a sort of wisdom,.may look forward1 to many rich years of a useful and • happy life; but he must make the necessary compromises withhis body to do so.:; •■•..■■■ f FOOD AND EXERCISE. ; His adjustments mean largely modification in his .thinking,, and in his habits of fatwg. drinking,: sleeping, and exercise. He findsihe can no longer eat as he once did,- and, .as1, a matter of. fact, he does not need the quantity of food which he once consumed. If he indulges in alcohol at all. he must now Ho it with discretion and judgment.' He must give greater care to .his sleeping'and secure a complete nights rest, and he can no longer safely indulge in strenuous exercise. Making a sudden sprint to .catch train, bus, or tram is no longer an .innocuous pastime; it may be _ highly dangerous. One finds himself obliged to consider many things never before given a thought, or else pay the penalty. It is no longer wise to live at high pressure; life must flovr with more ease and more deliberation. ', It may be observed, however, that mere years alone are not necessarily a safe guide as to when one has reached middle life. There are numerous individual variations with regard to these bodily changes; one man will show them comparatively early in life, another much later. In other words, a man is not so much as old as his years as he is as old as his body. It has been well said that a man is as old as his arteries, because heart and arteries are necessary to ..existence and