"Old" family members- What did they do to live longer than others?

Parent Cafe
1

<p>I want to know, not from articles or books, but would like that you share your personal knowledge about your family members, those that live to be 80 or more, what did they do to reach that age.</p>

<p>For example:
-Favorite foods:
++which one they like the most
++which one they avoid</p>

<p>-Exercise:
++Did they exercise or have a sedentary life</p>

<p>Hobbies: I’m sure they have a hobby, which one?
+Travelling
+Horse racing:
+Casino players
++Avid readers
…</p>

<p>Religion:
+Was a practioner or passive practitioner or not at all…</p>

<p>Other stories</p>

2

<p>I’d say they chose their ancestors very carefully. :slight_smile: My grandmother will be 98 in two weeks - still has all her marbles and can remember when every family member’s birthday is. She spends a lot of time dozing, reading, and watching television, but so what - she’s 98 and can do exactly what she wants.</p>

<p>She had a hard life, as so many European immigrants did. Lived in true poverty as a kid, and had to leave school at 16 to get a job to contribute to the family income. She smoked a while as a younger woman, but quit in her 50s. Had an alcohol problem until she was in her 60s. Had a heart attack the night my grandfather died 15 years ago, but essentially shrugged it off.</p>

<p>I think you can’t beat 300 generations of peasant DNA. Oh, and the hobbies - loves to play the slots, either virtually or at a casino. Her 70-something daughters regularly bring her to Foxwoods.</p>

3

<p>It’s genes.
After that environmental.</p>

<p>I noticed that in my fathers lineage for example- one of his greatX grandmothers died when she was 74.
In the 1600’s! After having 11 children!</p>

<p>Both of my maternal grandparents lived to be 85, this was after a lifetime of enjoying midwestern style meals ( heavy on the frying and meat- wilted lettuce salad was a favorite * made with bacon grease dressing* :wink: ).</p>

<p>However- their daughter ( my mother) died at barely 75, after recent health problems, despite better eating habits than her parents. Which gives more weight to her complaints that her administrative job made her ill, or rather the exposure to airborne toxins in the airplane factory where she worked did.</p>

4

<p>Thanks for sharing "fazzled1: If you know, please tell me about her favorite food and any special herbs she uses in cooking or used previously.</p>

<p>emeraldkity: tell us about their physical activities…</p>

5

<p>My father will most likely outlive his siblings (who died in their 70s–he will be 80 next year). </p>

<p>Big minus for him: sedentary life style. </p>

<p>Big pluses: </p>

<p>He quit smoking 50 years ago while his sibs quit smoking late in life (one sib died of lung cancer). </p>

<p>He keeps mentally active.</p>

<p>He is an active religious practitioner which keeps him socially engaged. </p>

<p>He has great medical care as retired military, which caught one condition early that killed one sib and which caught his cancer early.</p>

<p>I expect that he’ll live for many years to come.</p>

6

<p>She made a mean chicken soup at one time. Loves salmon. And doubtless the alcohol preserved things somewhat. :slight_smile: She and my grandfather were big proponents of Geritol (does that even exist anymore?). But I can’t think of anything else.</p>

7

<p>I remember have seen the “Geritol” in my grandparent’s house, too. </p>

<p>I just researched and it said “Geritol is a high potency multivitamin tablet/tonic to aid the system naturally. It enriches the human body and acts as a great source of nti-oxidnt.” A leading Multi-vitamin/All the daily requirements of healthy body/Vitamins A, C,& E in 100% pure anti-oxidant form/Not just a unique source of extra iron.</p>

<p>Chicken soup was also a must…</p>

<p>ellemenope: Nice story…one of my neighbors reached 100, she also had a sedentary life, but I don’t know the details about her diet. However, she used to hear race horsing in the radio…and she also bet (I thought it was strange for her age and generation, but maybe kept her alert and having an expectation in life. Who knows…?</p>

8

<p>My grandparents had been farmers, but came out to Seattle during WWII and my grandfather worked as a pipefitter and my grandmother a sales clerk.
When they retired they were fairly sedentary, watching a lot of television ( my grandfather loved wrestling- :wink: ), and watching out the window to see what their neighbors were doing ( that would be my grandmother)</p>

<p>They didn’t read- I mean they * could* read, but my grandfather had left school in 8th grade and I don’t think I ever saw a book in their house, other than the few books that my mother, had, had, in elementary school.
They did take Reader’s digest & they drove back to Missouri every other year for reunions in August.
My grandfather had also had to give up smoking, after he had two heart attacks in his early 60’s. ( he had smoked a pipe- but he really missed it- he used to sit out on the patio sniffing the neighbors cigarettes)</p>

<p>One of the reasons my H and I decided to live in Seattle, was so that we could be close to them to help if needed. My grandfather actually died of colon cancer not heart disease ( which could be attributed to diet), and my grandmother * did* have heart disease ( also diet)</p>

9

<p>Reader’s Digest - Was always in my grandparents house.</p>

<p>Scott Cod Liver Oil Emulsion- I hated when my grandma obligated me to have this, but in their minds this product was the best…</p>

<p>Grapejuice- “Welch’s”: my grandma thought it was the best juice ever for a healthy life.</p>

10

<p>I think my grandparents being able to stay in their home for shortly before they died was a factor & being in the city, they had close relationships with their neighbors.</p>

<p>( I also have several neighbors who are in their 90’s, and I think being able to stay in their own home and having family and friends around to help makes a difference)</p>

<p>My brother stayed with my mother the summer before her death- when problems with his own family made him move out. ( he had also just been laid off from his engineering job, so wanted to limit expenses)</p>

<p>My brother is extremely stressful to be around- and I encouraged my mother to refuse- but she had never been able to stand up to him at all.
I won’t go into more detail- but her health problems ( asthma) combined with stressful situation probably killed her.</p>

11

<p>Stress, that’s a wonderful subject. It seems to me that previous generations, even though they have their own stressors, their stressors were less complicated than the stressors of today. </p>

<p>Today with the faster communications and technology we also suffer the stress of what is going on in the communities and the world. An example the earthquake in CA, after couple of seconds we knew about it through this blogging…that was stressful (that is just a simple example).</p>

12

<p>My father-in-law is 95 and in good health for his age. His doctor told him he will likely live 5-10 more years, and that FIL is actually in better health than the dr. The only med FIL takes is a blood thinner. He never took an antibiotic until about 5 years ago; the dr. was shocked at that.</p>

<p>FIL lives alone in a senior mobile home park. He does his own cooking and cleaning and laundry and has a garden behind his house. He tries to get exercise in the garden or his little yard every day. Sometimes he has to work for just 15 minutes or half an hour and then rest, but he keeps at it. </p>

<p>He eats a big breakfast: bacon and eggs most days. Then a snack in the middle of the day and an early dinner. He is careful not to eat too much or get too overweight (though he is sort of “portly”). He eats lots of vegetables and meat. He does drink too much, but not all the time.</p>

<p>He grew up on a farm and then had to quit school and go to work in the coal mine when he was about 12. He only did that for about a year and hated it. He quit smoking in the early 60s as soon as the Surgeon General’s report about smoking came out. He then worked on the family farm until moving to CA. He worked in the canneries there, and eventually owned his own farm in Orange Co. He was very entrepreneurial, running several side businesses, including a restaurant. </p>

<p>He had five siblings: four sisters and a brother. The brother was an alcoholic and died in his 40s, but all the sisters lived into their 80s. I think they all grew up eating all organic food, and not too much of it, and as a previous poster said, “300 generations of peasant stock” goes a long way.</p>

<p>He is still quite sharp mentally and tells fantastic stories of his early days. He learned to drive an early Ford (Model A) when he was just 10. He still drives himself to the grocery store and dr. appts. </p>

<p>His big recreation is going to the casinos near here; someone takes him once a week. Last week he won $1,900! He has a good attitude in general and is accepting of what life offers. He has outlived two wives, and doesn’t care to have another, though many ladies have been interested.</p>

13

<p>My father is 93, lives on his own and takes the bus everywhere to shop. His favorite food has always been fruit and vegetables - not much of a meat eater. The biggest difference I see between him and others is that he worries very little, and has no regrets about how he lived his life.</p>

14

<p>My stepmother is 90 and still going strong. Her mother died at 92, and I agree with the previous posters who say that it’s genes that count the most. My stepmother takes one medication for high blood pressure and that’s it. The other factor is community: she is surrounded by many generations of loving family, is very active in her church, and she has many, many friends (by now most are younger than she is) whom she’s regularly in touch with. She’s slightly overweight, has a drink or two every day, and doesn’t eat a particularly healthy diet, but doesn’t eat a lot of junk food, either. She still travels (now with one or more of us along to help her with bags, etc.) and drives, but only locally and during the day. Her mind is completely sharp, and most of all she has a real equanimity about life; she’s the opposite of neurotic. She’s my role model for aging. :)</p>

15

<p>They chose their ancestors carefully, as someone before me posted. That literally is all they had in common. Some were sedentary; some active. Some drank and smoked; some didn’t. Some had pleasant personalities; some were curmudgeons. </p>

<p>I’d also guess that as do I, they had an overabundance of good cholesterol.</p>

16

<p>My mother is 98 and has outlived 2 husbands. She has always been an avid exerciser until a stroke a year ago…45 minutes of stretching in bed before getting up in the a.m. and 1/2 hour on a treadmill or bike in her gym after lunch and dinner. She used to swim daily year 'round.</p>

<p>Her early life was extremely stressful. Only girl, mother mentally ill. She was forced to be the housekeeper for her older brothers and father from the age of 13. None of them so much as dried a dish. Found her mother a suicide when she was 17. Had to live at home and commute to college (turning down a scholarship) so she could keep house with no washer, dryer or dishwasher. Her father lived with us until he died at 67. One brother died at 32, the other at 67. Rejecting MIL because of religious differences.</p>

<p>She never smoked or drank anything other than milk, water or fruit juice. Hates vegetables and fruit. A “salad” was a lettuce leaf and a slice of tomato. Diet heavy on mostly lamb, some beef but limits sweets to one piece of candy a day if she is given a box. Loves ice cream but only has one scoop a week. She has always watched her weight and still doesn’t want to get fat. Through her 25 years of teaching first grade she ate one slice of cheese and an apple for lunch every single day.</p>

<p>Everyone thinks I “eat healthy” but I’m not nearly as abstemious as she. I looked forward to being out of her house and cooking what I wanted to eat. Unfortunately, it shows on me. :grin:</p>

<p>She always had a drawer full of vitamins…probably took about 30 pills a day. Her only surgery ever was for cataracts and she’s never had a major illness, only colds. Her cholesterol is well over 300 and has been since it was first measured when she was 80. (good ratio) She would go decades without seeing a doctor even though she had excellent medical insurance.</p>

17

<p>My father died suddenly at 89. He was extremely active and engaged and had lots and lots of friends. Religion? Only if you count his disdain for it. Food? Most anything he could get his hands on, including jelly beans. He was never heavy. Smoked but quit cold turkey in his forties. His secret was really being so engaged with so many people.</p>

<p>I know someone whose mother is 98 years old. She smokes two packs a day. :eek:</p>

18

<p>Did any of your “elderlies” 80 and over take any particular vitamins, Scott emulsion, Geritol…</p>

19

<p>My grandmother died at age 99. </p>

<p>She smoked for 40 years and finally quit when she was in her mid-60s.</p>

<p>She wouldn’t touch fruits or vegetables after age 70 because her sister told her they’d give her diverticulitis. Her diet consisted exclusively of meats, bread, cookies, candy, and cakes. As a result, she was extremely overweight.</p>

<p>She was a teetotaler who swore she’d never touched a drop of alcohol in her life.</p>

<p>She didn’t exercise.</p>

<p>She was emotionally fragile and got stressed out easily.</p>

<p>She was very religious.</p>

<p>She rarely left her home except to go to church or to the grocery store.</p>

<p>She was obsessive-compulsive about the cleanliness of her home and she vacuumed it two times every day.</p>

<p>She was an avid reader, letter writer, and artist (oil painting.)</p>

<p>Her husband died when she was 58 and she lived alone until age 99, when she entered a nursing home because of problems related to arthritis. She passed away six months later–one week shy of her 100th birthday.</p>

<p>Despite her obesity, unusual diet, history of smoking, and lack of exercise, my grandmother never spent a day in the hospital or took any medications (except a multivitamin.) She was a living testament to the power of genes.</p>

<p>My grandmother’s siblings also lived to ripe old ages, and her son–my dad–is still going strong at age 80. He has the strength and stamina of someone 20 years younger.</p>

20

<p>My father (knock on wood) will be 90 next week. He is still entirely “there,” and still goes to his office every day (he’s been at the same law firm for almost 60 years). He rode the subway until a year or so ago.</p>

<p>No direct ancestor of his, going back several generations, reached anything close to that age; his mother died at 79 and his father at 69. He has a little brother who’s going to be 86 this year.</p>

<p>He has never smoked, or had anything more to drink than a glass of wine. He used to have a very high cholesterol level, but stopped eating red meat after he had to have a triple bypass 16 years ago. He wears a pacemaker, and takes blood-thinning medication. And his hearing isn’t good.</p>

<p>Until 16 years ago, I suspect that he had taken only a small handful of sick days his entire life.</p>

<p>And he’s still pretty healthy for someone his age. </p>

<p>He never used to exercise, but has followed an exercise program since his bypass. </p>

<p>And he has a much younger wife who takes very good care of him. And he receives excellent medical care from his doctors at one of the best teaching hospitals in NYC, not far from his home on the Upper East Side. Some paid by his insurance, and some (I think) gets paid because he’s a veteran, although I don’t know the details.</p>

<p>I know very well that I won’t live remotely that long myself. I never even expected to reach 50. My parents were both very healthy (my mother died at 52, but it was because of a car accident). Obviously, that aspect of genetics didn’t help in my case!</p>