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Healthy Aging By Sharon Johnson Outgoing gardener defies age stereotype The president of the Jackson County Master Food Preservers is a master gardener, a trained herbalist and a strong and healthy senior citizen. Almost daily, she is in her own garden or in the Oregon State University Extension gardens. Ellen Scannell is doing the best form of physical activity for the older American, current research suggests. Gardening increases bone strength, improves balance and regenerates muscles (including the heart). Ellen knows that. She grows her own food and her own herbs. She tends the berries and vegetables that grow on the OSU Extension grounds on Hanley Road. She preserves, freezes, dries and deftly prepares garden produce. As a former dietitian, Ellen understands the concept of "food for health." Ellen could be the poster person for the cover of a book published in 1999 as part of a study by the MacArthur Foundation. The book is called "Successful Aging" and was written by Dr. John Rowe, president of Mount Sinai Hospital�s School of Medicine, and Robert L. Kahn, professor of psychology and public health at the University of Michigan. The book refers to successful aging as "growing old with good health, strength and vitality." The MacArthur Foundation study is based on dozens of individual research projects on aging. Evaluated were 4,000 Americans from 70 to 79 years old. The top third were identified as "successful agers" in terms of their mental and physical functioning. Some of the findings were not surprising. Successful agers were in their early 70s and had high lung function and normal weight. Successful agers all participated in either moderate or strenuous physical activity. The MacArthur folks approached physical function from an entirely different angle and can claim partial responsibility for starting to topple some of the stereotypes about slow-moving, inactive elders. The most striking finding in the study was that nearly a quarter of the successful agers further improved their function over the eight years they were studied, debunking the myth that losses in physical function are a part of advancing age. The analysis went further by recognizing that exercise and fitness-oriented activities are pathways to good physical function, but that physical function is just one of many important factors in successful aging. Mental ability and social relationships were also found to be critical factors in defining an older person�s physical status. The link between mind and body can be quite powerful. Activities that required a combination of mental and physical involvement and have a hint of social connectedness are the type that fared best in an examination of successful agers. Another striking finding in the MacArthur Study, new to the medical literature, suggested that frequency of emotional and social support was a very strong predictor of improved physical function with age. And that brings us back to Ellen. She can hoe beans all morning in the field on Hanley Road and "field" questions on food safety and food preservation processing times all afternoon. Ellen makes sure her gardening activities fit her personal plan for lifelong learning. She and her "social supports," other master gardeners and/or master food preservers, provide good examples for all of us to follow. Ellen naturally practices the critical components of successful aging. She avoids disease through good nutrition and preventive approaches. She stays actively engaged in meaningful activities. And she maintains high physical function. If you roll by 569 Hanley Road on a spring, summer or fall day, you are likely to see Ellen in the field, floppy beige hat on her gray head to block the sun, work gloves on to protect from blisters, bending from the hips to protect her back. Successful gardening, successful aging. Sharon Johnson is an assistant professor in family and community development at OSU Extension and a member of the Senior Advisory Council. Reach her at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.