Valley seniors may hold key to aging well
By Celia Chan
The Arizona Republic
PEORIA, Ariz. (Aug. 9, 2009) -- Helen Benner remembers toiling as a child on a 40-acre Ohio farm, helping plant 3,000 tomato plants in one afternoon, carrying 5-gallon buckets of water out to the chickens and milking cows at 5 a.m. before heading to school.
"I think my early time on the farm did me a world of good, even though I thought it was cruel to make me work like that," said Benner, who lives in a Peoria retirement community. "It made me strong."
At 87, Benner drives to Arizona Diamondbacks games, plays golf, lifts weights and swims every morning. Her life may provide a lesson to Baby Boomers who want to age well.
Benner and about 600 northwest Valley seniors are participating in a multiyear pilot project to determine how some people manage to age healthfully into their 80s, 90s and 100s.
Dr. Walter Nieri, director of Sun Health Research Institute's Center for Healthy Aging, said research may provide a guide to the younger, 60-plus crowd. Baby Boomers, the largest generation in U.S. history, are 78 million strong. The oldest Boomers turn 63 this year.
Some of the preliminary findings from the two-year-old pilot program aren't surprising. Those who lead long, independent lives share such common denominators as a good diet and exercise, an active social network, resiliency and an ability to overcome hardships. They also have a religious or spiritual base.
