How old are you?

Old age is a blessing but it looks as if a lot of people do not want this blessing anymore. Not too long ago people used to boast of how older they are than their colleagues and how they witnessed an event at a time that others were still clots of blood in their mums' bellies.

But it seems things have changed. The 'forever young' fever is blowing all over the place and people want to be associated more with the young than the old. I have heard 45 and 50 year olds claiming to be youth. Jonathan Swift was right when he said, 'Every man desires to live long, but no man would be old.'

In the past we had old men and old women. But now they are all gone. It looks as if the obsession to be young is even grave in the women fraternity than men. Women, it seems, just hate to be seen as old. A lot spend sums of money on make-ups and other artificial beatification ventures - all with the hope of looking as young and attractive as possible. I know of ladies who can't go without make-ups; they wear them as soon as they get out of bed. They detest being addressed by the title 'woman'. No! That's for old folks. If you can't call her 'lady', maybe 'dear' will do. They have had squabbles with those who give them the wrong tittles. Let me tell you my experience which I am sure is not new to some of you.

I entered this bus one day and sat beside a lady. While I was about to sit beside her I politely asked, 'Can you shift a little bit Ma'am'. 'Sure', she said, and courteously budged to give me space beside her, but uttered, a few seconds later; 'but I am not your Mum'. Realizing that she has misconstrued what I said I explained to her that I meant 'Ma'am' as in 'Madam'. She apologized but added immediately that even if I meant 'madam', that title was not appropriate for her. Madam, she explained, connotes superiority which is closely associated with age; just as school children would call their female teachers. I responded that even if that was so I still think the title is appropriate because she is obviously older than I am.

She asked how old I was and I told her. She smiled and said I was two years older than her. 'That is not possible!!' I exclaimed. 'Why not', she asked. Realizing the implication of my comment I immediately came in, almost murmuring: 'well, I don't mean impossible, I guess I made the wrong judgment when I saw you'. Well, who is to blame; I guess your prejudiced mind', she told me.

I might have made the wrong judgment about her age but how am I supposed to know that this lady is younger than I am when she actually looks my-elderly-sister. In times when people hardly mention their ages for various reasons, the only way to guess someone's age is their looks. Young people are supposed to look healthier, fresher and more active. And who does not want to be associated with these qualities. No wonder there are no old people in our societies today. Everywhere you go everybody claims to be youth. Even the obviously old people claim to be young at heart.

But indeed there are various ways to stay young and healthy throughout the years. If looking young and healthy means any thing to you, I prescribe the most effective single medicine for you - physical activity. This prescription has been known to man since time immemorial and today's research has helped to unlock the reasons behind this observation; further cementing man's believe in the prescription.

In 1966 the Texas Southwestern Medical School carried out a study in which they used 5 healthy 20-year olds who volunteered. The first part of the trial was for them to be idle in bed for three weeks. At the end of the three weeks the researchers found that the 20-year-olds had developed many physiologic characteristics of men twice their age. In just three weeks these hitherto healthy young men had developed devastating changes that included faster resting heart rates, higher blood pressures, a drop in the heart's maximum pumping capacity, a rise in body fat, and a fall in muscle strength similar to men in their 40s.

It took 8 weeks of exercise to return the men to their 20 year-old measurements. Well this is one of the reasons you have to keep being active because a day of inactivity might require three days of physical activity to normalize. The men were monitored and lived healthy lives for thirty years. At age 50 their assessment showed that they had become 25% heavier than they were in their 20's. Their average body fat had doubled, with a rise in resting heart rate and blood pressure and a fall in maximum heart pumping capacity. But even at 50 the study found that their hearts worked better than it did when they were bed rested in their 20s. This tells us that the toll of time (age) might not be as severe as the toll of inactivity (lack of exercise).

The researchers then put the 50 year-olds on a 6-month exercise programme in which they walked, jogged and rode bicycles. They found after the programme that their measurements were reversed to the figures they had in their 20's. The exception was weight loss which couldn't match up with their 20's measurements.

In another study in Briton, a professor of genetic epidemiology at King's College in London Tim D. Spector led a study which found that the act of exercise may actually protect the body against the aging process. Using 2,400 Briton twins they examined structures called telomeres which provide a protective cover at the ends of chromosomes, the structures that carry the genes. As the cells divide and multiply one experiences growth. Every time a cell divides, the telomeres get shorter, which means they get shorter with age. When the telomeres get too short, the cell can no longer divide, probably because there isn't much protective cover to go through the cell division process. Scientists believe that aging occurs as more and more cells reach the end of their telomeres and die - muscles weaken, skin wrinkles, eyesight and hearing fade, organs fail, and thinking clouds

The twins were subjected to different activity levels over a 10-year period. The researchers found that those who engaged in more physical activities had longer telomeres and vice versa. People who did a moderate amount of exercise had average telomere lengths like those of someone about five or six years younger than those who did the least. And those who did the most had telomeres that appeared to be about nine years younger than those who did the least. Spector said he hopes doctors can use the findings to encourage people to exercise more.

The good thing about exercise is that it does not have to be painful to be effective. The only thing to take into consideration is that it has to be regular.

All it takes is to get back to your youngster days when you used to kick a ball, ride a bike, skip with a rope and jump around. Interestingly as you act more and more like a young person you look same. So, the best way to show that you bought that car with your hard-earned Ghana cedis is not to be in it everywhere you go. Now it looks as if the only walking you do in a day is from your car to your office, from your car to the restraint, from your car to the house. Leave the car alone for long distances and begin to walk for short distances. Use the stairs form your floor to the next floor instead of the elevator. Whatever you do try your best to stay active.

Mariah Carry might have gotten married to Nick Cannon who is 11 years younger than her, but the truth is that Mariah actually acts and looks as though she is 10 years younger. So my ladies, instead of worrying about how that biological clock is ticking and trying hard to conceal the features of 'mother old age' with make -ups, there are some healthy activities you might want to engage in to stay young; because trust me, in the end it's not about how old you are, but how young you look. There are many activities like jogging, cycling, swimming and dancing (salsa seem to be the catch of the moment) which can be combined with fun to make exercise a welcome activity. Start one today and experience the joy in exercise.

The good news is that it does not matter how many years of inactivity, anybody can start to exercise and begin to look and feel young. You have control over whether you want to stay active or not because whether you like it or not people will look at you and try to answer the question 'how old is she/he?' without your consent.

SOURCE:MYJOYONLINE