Our Maine Street's Aroostook Issue 22 : Fall 2014 | Page 80

controlled by genetics,” said Dr. Gary Small, director of
the UCLA Center on Aging and author of The Longevity
Bible. “About two-thirds is based on our personal
lifestyle choices – and is therefore under our control.”
Great news!

and be open to others sharing theirs with you. Pickup the phone, stop by for a visit, Tweet, text, Skype,
write a letter, send a card, or choose any other of the
gazillion ways there are to keep connected. Multiple
studies have also shown that adopting a pet promotes
longevity and happiness too so share your love with a
furry, scaled, or feathered friend.

So what lifestyle choices can boost your chances of
getting into “the club”? Here are some ways you can
master the art of aging well:
Be Mental
In recent years, scientists have found that our brain
Exercise Optimism
cells don’t die as we age (a common assumption), but
Having a positive outlook is probably the single most rather the connections between our brain cells slow
important factor in living a long, vibrant life. Holding down or get broken. This discovery has resulted in an
on to negativity is poisonous to your physical, mental, explosion of research focusing on ways to preserve
and emotional wellbeing and can accelerate the those connections and, thereby, promote brain
aging process. Make
function and mental
it a habit to look at
acuity well into our
life with a glass halflater years. Although
full attitude.
You
there is still a lot of
can’t always prevent
mystery associated
adversity, but you
with how the