Disease As we grow older, there are life course choices that we can make to increase the likelihood that we will remain healthy and independent. Scientific studies have established that lifestyle choices more than heredity determine health, functioning, and vitality in later life. The 1988 Surgeon General s Report on Nutrition and Health noted that two-thirds of all deaths are due to diseases associated with poor diets and dietary habits. Thus, what we eat significantly affects our health, our quality of life, and our longevity.
Good nutrition is essential to maintaining cognitive and physical functioning.
It plays an essential role in the prevention or management of many chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, and osteoporosis. For minority older Americans who tend to have a higher incidence of chronic disease, this information is even more important to heed. Only tobacco use causes more preventable deaths in the United States. Recent evidence indicates that good health may be extended and disability delayed by at least seven years if we stop smoking, maintain a weight appropriate for our height and body frame, and remain physically active. The good news from all of these studies is that it is never too late for you to begin to make the right life course choices to adopt a lifestyle that will promote a long, healthy, and independent life.