LEBANON: Use Humour to Live Healthy, Live Longer

BEIRUT (The Daily Star), May 14, 2005: If you would like to live to the ripe old age of 100, you should plan to laugh a lot, exercise a lot and eat and drink sparsely, according to researchers participating in the second day of the four-day Middle East Medical Assembly. During the first presentation made on geriatrics at the international medical conference being held at the American University of Beirut, Acting Chair and Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Population Studies Abla Sibai, announced studies have shown people who reach their 100th birthday tend to use humor as a coping mechanism and constantly stimulate themselves intellectually. They are also non-smokers, are not obese, and only consume small amounts of alcohol. Sibai said while the age at which a person is considered elderly is debatable and influenced by cultural factors, what is inevitable is the fact the world will have more old people over the next 50 years. As a result, health professionals will have to learn how to deal with managing diseases particular to the elderly. Associate Professor of Medicine at St. Louis University, Dr. Ramzi Hajjar, offered a "road map" for managing the health of the elderly. Among the main dangers which elderly patients face are reduction in muscle mass and bone density, cognitive and psychiatric impairment and artery issues. In addition to encouraging older patients to exercise, Hajjar highlighted the positive effects of hormone replacement therapy, particularly the use of testosterone among male patients. Hajjar alerted physicians to new discoveries in the management of elderly patients' health, warning against resorting to the same reasoning a physician uses to diagnose younger patients. Hajjar cautioned doctors against placing their patients on more than "eight or nine medications," as research has shown taking more than six medications at once exponentially increases the risk of drug interactions and thus could put the patient at risk. The Daily Star Copyright (c) 2005