COVER STORY
Hitting a century – seeking the secret to successful ageing October is Seniors Month and to celebrate JULIE LAKES meets the golden oldies who are living proof that life is good long after turning 90. South Wales is investigating the environmental and genetic determinants of successful ageing. It’s led by Professor Perminder Sachdev of the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA). The study has already determined that up to 50 per cent of us will suffer from some sort of cognitive decline, such as Alzheimer’s disease, as we age but the rest, who continue to function well mentally and physically, are of especial interest. Research also indicates that those with optimistic personalities, strong social connections and a reason to get up in the morning have the right stuff for a long life that remains worth living. Those attributes certainly describe the people interviewed for this story.
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hen Greg Champion sang that he’d made A Hundred in the Backyard at Mum’s we took it as a celebration of youthful achievement and aspiration. But today it’s Mum who is making her century, and Dad too – and we are celebrating longevity, not cricket – because centenarians are Australia’s fastest-growing demographic. Never before have we seen so many nonagenarians and centenarians not only making it into what we used to consider extreme old age, but still living life to the full. They are driving cars, sitting on committees, playing music, writing books, taking part in community activities and – often – living alone. Yet exactly why it is that some people live so much longer than others continues
to baffle researchers looking for a common denominator. Obvious reasons for longevity today include better nutrition, better health care including technologies and diagnostics, improved public and domestic safety, fewer wars, shorter working hours and longer holidays, better housing and sanitation, better education and health information and much-improved aged care management. Then there’s what is probably the most important factor of all – luck. Because it’s not just about living long, it’s about living well, or what we now call “successful ageing”. And achieving this is probably due not just to the foregoing factors but to genetics and life choices. A program at the University of New
JOHN LEISTEN, 97, is a former chemistry lecturer who was still involved in youth education in his late 80s. He is now on a mission to convince our governments of the need to improve the quality of science education in our schools. He played tennis until he was 91, squash in earlier years and has been a lifelong bush walker, rock climber and mountaineer. His other passion is opera and he and wife June, married for 62 years, still go to concerts when they can. And when they can’t, they listen to them on YouTube because John is adept with digital technology – he has his own website aimed at helping parents teach their kids science and has just had an article published in an international science journal. John is short and lightly built. Yet, in his own words: “I have always eaten just what I wanted. I drink when I am thirsty, and never drink plain water. I am a sugar
baby and have two or three teaspoons of sugar in tea or coffee depending on the size of the cup. I like salty food and have attracted comment for sprinkling food before I have tasted it. I dislike lean meat very much, and I am liberal with butter. I choose full cream milk and have quite a lot of cream and ice cream. “In recent years I have had half a glass of wine with the main meal (usually lunch) almost every day. “At 97, after almost a lifetime of flouting nutritionists’ do’s and don’ts, I am a virtual proof that nutrition is a charlatan science”. He does eat small portions though, with plenty of fruit and veg and for the past decade has taken 100 units a day of Vitamin E. He thinks the intensity of his passion for science might be a factor in his longevity but attributes it mainly to luck. LIKE THE LEISTENS, World War II veteran Henry Martel, 96, and his wife Diana, 90, still live in their own home and maintain strong connections with family and friends, many of whom belong to the same social group which meets regularly to enjoy trips around south-east Queensland. This helps overcome one of the problems of advanced old age which, Henry says, is outliving so many of your old friends that you have nobody to share memories with. Both John and Henry are retired academics, which tends to reinforce the belief that chances of successful aging are enhanced by a good education that fosters lifelong intellectual interests and helps us make better life choices. However, not all our nonagenarians have had that opportunity, especially women.
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