Keeping active in retirement

Why is keeping active in retirement important?

Though diet and exercise have an important role to play here, human beings are social animals at their core.

While quitting the hustle and bustle of work for a retired life of lounging around with a TV remote may seem enticing, research shows that a passive lifestyle is increasingly seen as a high-risk factor for Dementia– a still incurable disease of the brain that causes the progressive degeneration of brain cells. Cognitive decline as you age appears to be largely due to altered connections among brain cells.

But research has found that keeping the brain active in retirement seems to increase its vitality and may build its reserves of brain cells and connections.

Major risk factors for Alzheimer’s are obesity, smoking, alcohol, and physical inactivity.

You don’t have to turn your life upside down or make extreme changes to achieve many of these benefits.

How to keep active in retirement

• Start with something small, like a daily walk.
• After a while, add another small change.
• Keep your brain active every day.
• Stay curious and involved – commit to lifelong learning.
• Read, write, solve crosswords or other puzzles.
• Attend lectures and plays.
• Enrol in courses.
• Play games such as Bridge.
• Stay physically active.
• Try memory exercises.