What exactly does anti-aging mean to you? For some it means longevity anti-aging.

This phrase really encompasses a whole host of meanings:

• Living longer
• Looking younger
• Staying healthy into your later years
• Staying physically fit into your later years
• Staying mentally fit into your later years
• Not appearing to be your “biological” age
• Slowing down or reversing the process of aging
• Complete rejuvenation to a youthful condition

Perhaps longevity anti-aging should start with the internal then proceed to the external. If you aren’t looking after your nutritional intake it may be very difficult to control your external appearance, or your longevity factors, regardless of what anti aging cream you use or nip and tucks you participate in or how badly you want to live forever.

As we age, we find it harder and harder to fight the urge to pull out our wallets to purchase anti-aging products in relation to nutrition, physical fitness, skin care, hormone replacements, vitamins, supplements and herbs. These are lucrative global industries. We get so caught up in all the hype and different messages coming from so many sources that we end up very frustrated with all kinds of expensive skin care products, books, cosmetics and fad purchases.

Before you succumb to diet after diet, drawers full of cosmetics, surgery and the like start longevity anti-aging in your own kitchen. It doesn’t have to be complicated:

1. Stop buying packaged and processed foods as much as possible. I used to love canned soup and ate it almost every day. Now, I could care less if I ever open a can again. It’s not on my shopping list anymore.
2. Stop focusing on unhealthy foods that you shouldn’t eat anymore and try re-focusing on healthy foods that you can eat. Sure, I don’t want to eat a bunch of salt so I stopped buying salted nuts and now buy unsalted nuts. I still get to eat and enjoy the nuts! I don’t buy yogurt with sugars. I buy non-sweetened and add a little stevia or frozen blueberries.
3. Stop drinking coffee all day long. Sure, have a cup in the morning. Find something else that’s healthy and that you really like and drink that for the rest of the day. Herbal teas, coconut milk, decaf soy beverages. The list is long.
4. Stop using sugar and try stevia.
5. Stop eating luncheon meats, sausages and cured meats. Find alternatives. Cook a chicken breast for your sandwich instead. Cook a roast and use it during the week for sandwiches.
6. Stop eating commercial breakfast cereals loaded with sugars. Find alternatives that you can eat. Try scottish oatmeal (try Bob’s Red Mill oatmeal cereals) with frozen blueberries or raisins mixed in.
7. Stop eating fried fast foods. Take a bit of time for yourself and plan properly so you don’t get pushed into the fast food zone.
8. Stop buying products with food additives such as MSG, aspartame.

The above are only a few examples of looking after your nutritional intake in order to get on the road to longevity anti-aging.  For better health get your mind off what you can’t have and get it focused on what you can have.  You’ll be pleasantly surprised how well this works.

What are you doing now that you believe is helping with longevity anti-aging? Do you think the fountain of youth could be as simple as a healthy diet? I want to hear your thoughts on longevity anti-aging.

Is being left handed really a subject for healthtopics.ca?  It’s been reported that left handed folks have shorter life spans than the folks who have no problem living in their right handed world.  An article titled “Do Right Handed People Live Longer” will hopefully clear up this misinformation.

My Mother said she was forced to become right handed in school when a teacher pinched her ear every time she used her left hand.

I was born left handed.  Did I get the frustrated left handed gene? 

I recently read a comment that left handed folks are the most discriminated people on the planet! We’ll I don’t know that I would go that far but yes, left handed life dishes out some huge challenges. 

It started for me before school.  My Mother got a left handed boy in the neighborhood to teach me how to tie my shoes.   I couldn’t grasp the right handed way of getting laced up.  Then there was cutting food on my plate with the knife and fork.  Couldn’t muster that without some help from another left handed kindred spirit. 

Once I started school I couldn’t translate certain things on the blackboard to the paper in front of me on my desk.  My check marks, p’s, b’s and d’s were all backward when I wrote them on the page.  I don’t remember any teachers speaking to me about it or correcting me.

I have always believed that I was just gimpy when it comes to slicing cheese or bread.  Never, ever, ever have I been able to slice any cheese or bread evenly.  Drives my husband crazy.  I felt absolutely vindicated when I discovered that knives are serrated for right handed people.  With a knife serrated for a left handed person – guess what – no problem.  Everything is evenly sliced.  That was a huge ahh ha moment for me but it didn’t happen until I was in my 40’s! 

I tried using a left handed can opener. I couldn’t do it.  Having grown up in a right handed world there are just some things that are ingrained.  I did eventually buy an electric can opener as I didn’t have the strength in my right hand to use the can opener properly.

I would so like to see right handed people brought up in a left handed world.  Can you imagine?  All your kitchen instruments having spouts and handles on the opposite side to make for easier pouring and gripping for the left handed person.  Your note book designed for a left handed person so there would be no struggle with writing – either with the binding rings in the middle of the book or getting ink on your hand.

There is one fun advantage in my home to being left handed.  I always know when someone has been using my computer.   It bugs my family as they can’t figure out how I know they’ve been in my office.  What they haven’t figured out is that everytime they use my computer they turn the mouse in the opposite direction to accommodate their right hand.  Viola..I know they have been using my computer!

Please share your left handed stories with me.