The Advocate Newspaper invited BARP to write a monthly column to appear on the last Sunday of every month.  July's column focusses on the importance of social interaction and activities for the health and well-being of older persons.  In the June column, we ask why the incidence of non-communicable diseases is not abating and examine what we can do about it.  In the May column, we addressed the misconception that older people stay at home and do little - not true! 

If you missed the columns, here they are:

THE VOICE OF BARP - The Barbados Association of Retired Persons – July 2010

Socialising is good for you

Over 750 people attended the Annual BARP Cropover Day Fete at Ilaro Court last weekend. But as well as having enjoyed a great afternoon and evening’s entertainment, how many of them were aware of the potential health benefits they gained from taking part in this social gathering?

Studies have suggested that while physical fitness is very important and has quite clearly been shown to be related to better health and longevity, focussing only on physical activity can obscure the health benefits that may be associated with social and productive activities that involve little or no physical exertion.  Indeed, there is a growing body of research that recognises the importance of social engagement and productive activity as essential features of successful ageing in that they have a positive effect on elders’ emotional well-being and physical health. 

As we get older, we risk losing the potential benefits of social participation and relationships as a result of reduced opportunity.  The social circle we may have developed over a lifetime can change and will often diminish.  Time and time again you will hear people say, “All I seem to be doing these days is attending the funerals of friends and relatives.”  Parents, siblings and a spouse may die leaving loved ones alone for many years.  Due to the significant difference in life expectancies, most women can expect to spend several years alone.  The danger is that we begin to withdraw and start on the slippery slope to social isolation and loneliness, which in itself is considered by many to be a major health risk factor. 

Humans are naturally social beings, preferring to live in groups with a high level of social interaction.  We are dependent on one another for everything from food and clothing to health.  Statistics show that people who are isolated and lonely have a higher incidence of health problems.  One study of women even found that symptoms of depression and lack of social support were associated with more heart attacks, open heart surgeries and deaths from cardiovascular disease.  

So what are some of the social and productive activities that would seem to offer such important health benefits and how can you become involved in them?  In Barbados, one of the most common regular gatherings is of course that which takes place at church.  One report actually came to the conclusion that seniors who attended church at least weekly lived longer, which may have as much to do with the social interactions provided as with the spiritual aspects.  Social groups and events such as exhibitions, health fairs, concerts, tea parties, dances and get-togethers all come under the heading of social activities which are likely to have a positive effect on your health and well being by providing opportunities for performing meaningful social roles and promoting the ‘feel-good’ factor. Visiting friends, especially those with whom you have not been in touch for some time, can also be immensely valuable and satisfying for all concerned.  

Although productive activities can include gardening, cooking or shopping, those which also have a social aspect are obviously the most beneficial.  Augmenting knowledge and developing skills or talents can result in feelings of increased self efficacy and a sense of meaning and purpose in life especially when experienced in the company of others.  Attending lectures on Caribbean history, enrolling on a computer course, or joining an art class for beginners are just a few of the activities provided by BARP which satisfy the criteria for productive activity which also provides social interaction. 

Perhaps clinicians will consider adding powerful new preventative health care measures by recognising the health benefits of social and productive activities as complements to diet and exercise.  Even on their own, social and productive activities may have substantial and independent health benefits.  

So don’t wait for your doctor to tell you.  Visit the BARP website at barpbb.com for a list of our events and courses and make a decision to join in and benefit in more ways than you ever imagined.

THE VOICE OF BARP - The Barbados Association of Retired Persons – June 2010

Time to take care of ourselves

The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Barbados is celebrating 25 years of informing, guiding and advising us how to protect ourselves from the potentially fatal consequences of heart disease and strokes, both of which occupy prime positions on the list of illnesses described as ‘non-communicable diseases’.  So why is the incidence of these diseases not abating?  Why are the cardiologists still seeing new cases every day, especially in the fifty plus age group?  Our age group.

Of the many reasons, there is one which stands out head and shoulders above the rest for which we must each as individuals take responsibility.  Clearly, not enough of us are paying attention to the information, guidance and advice that The Heart and Stroke Foundation and many others are disseminating on a daily basis.  We hear or see, but too often we don’t listen or act.

What did you have for breakfast this morning?  What are you planning to have, or what did you have for lunch? If you are enjoying a little snack as you read this, is it a piece of fruit or a piece of cake?  How much exercise have you had today? 

Now, if you had fresh fruit for breakfast, followed by a 2 kilometre walk or a 30 minute swim in the sea, had grilled chicken breast and salad for lunch and, as you are reading this are drinking fresh vegetable juice and nibbling on apple segments, please don’t throw down your newspaper and get online to email us at BARP and complain that you resent the implication that people aged 50 and over are not playing their part in the fight to reduce the incidence and consequences of non-communicable diseases.  People like you are the shining examples from whom others in our age cohort need to take their inspiration.

The sad truth is that we have become very lazy in our attitude to the role we should be playing in looking after our personal health, assuming that if we get ill, the doctors can fix it with all their advanced technology and drugs.  And if we are lucky enough to be able to afford health insurance, that’s even better.  We can visit the doctor as often as we want, have everything treated and it hardly costs us anything.  It’s as if there is no longer any incentive to take care of our own health.

It’s a bit like our attitude to hurricanes.  All the signs point to an above average season for hurricane activity, but what measures have you already put in place to protect yourself from the potential devastation of a direct hit or even an indirect swipe from a major hurricane?  Or, like heart attacks and strokes, do you think they will only happen to other people? 

Even though we’re unlikely to completely escape hurricanes or illness in our lifetime, there is a great deal we can do to minimize the effect and consequences of both by preparing our defenses in advance and not waiting until it is too late.  The bad news is that apathy and inertia can kill, the good news is that they are both easily curable by taking a healthy dose of action.  Its time we took protecting and taking care of ourselves more seriously, and in doing so we will also provide the good examples to others mentioned earlier. 

For those of you who have not already done so, take the first step today.  Write down a realistic and achievable change to your lifestyle, whether it relates to your diet or exercise, and commit to making that change throughout this coming week.  And while you have a pen and paper in your hands, make a list of those preparations you know you should be making for the hurricane season and commit to putting those in place this week also.

When you have finished, visit the BARP website at www.barpbb.com and using the contact form, tell us about the lifestyle change or changes you are going to make so that we can share them with others and help lead the way to a healthier nation.  There are 24,000 of us in BARP – together, we really can make a difference.

THE VOICE OF BARP - The Barbados Association of Retired Persons – May 2010

There was a Time when…

We keep being told that 50 is the new 40, 60 the new 50 and so on.  So if we continue to lop ten years off every milestone decade, then despite the fact that we are becoming an increasingly ageing society, it would seem that at the same time, we are also getting younger.  And there is certainly quite a bit of evidence to support this positive and optimistic trend. 

There was a time when, following retirement, many women would settle down to a life of cooking, baking and knitting, as well as babysitting grands and great-grands, whilst the men folk might tend to the garden, go and watch a game of cricket or football, participate in a game of dominoes, or make the occasional trek to the beach. Retirement could have been described as a quiet life, mostly confined to the home and the immediate community.

These days, you are just as likely to see people in their 60s, 70s and 80s participating in the Senior Games at the National Stadium, partying with the energy of a previous generation at the BARP Cropover Fete, or going to the gym and ‘working out’, the result of which is that they are often more fit and supple and have more energy than those 20 years their junior.

There was a time when us ‘older folk’ would have dismissed electronic gadgets like computers as ‘new fangled technology’ for which we had neither need nor interest.  Yet a recent CADRES poll carried out for BARP showed that over 60% of the Association’s members use the internet and email on a regular basis.  Indeed, at the re-launch of the BARP website www.barpbb.com earlier this year, The Hon. Maizie Barker-Welch and fellow BARP member Margaret Turpin, both avid internet users in their 80’s, spoke in glowing terms of the site and its ease of use.

There was time when life on the island meant life on the island and despite having more leisure time at their disposal, few would leave the shores of their homeland to experience what lay beyond.  Now, the airport and sea port are regular setting off and arrival points for people of all ages.  How much it adds to life’s experience to travel and absorb or be immersed in regional or international culture, is immeasurable.  And it is said that the older we get, the more we appreciate the things we have, the time we spend, the things we see and the people we love.

So maybe it is true.  Maybe age really is only a number these days, and doesn’t automatically mean one thing or another. Maybe we can no longer be compartmentalised into our decades with assumptions made about what we can and cannot do, or what we are or are not capable of.

Now there’s a conclusion that needs to be arrived at by banks, financial institutions, insurance companies and certain government departments.  Perhaps there was a time when being retired and being in our 60s, 70s or 80s meant that we were not necessarily the best bet when it came to loans, travel insurance or driving.  But that was then and this is now.  Many seniors are more fit, active, able, safety conscious and knowledgeable than they have ever been.  Dismissing an entire generation due to outdated stereotypes based on numbers is a big mistake.