For all the health issues that we face, life expectancy in Australia continues to increase. According to the AIHW, a male born today can expect to live 81.3 years and a female 85.4 years. This is 30 years more that at the turn of the 20th century. Surprisingly the gender gap has widened from 3.7 to 4.1 years.
Australians on average live six years longer than Americans and two longer than the British.
This is excellent news and should be celebrated while at the same time we can strive for further improvement especially in quality of life. The question that we have not answered and often don’t even ask is why some people live better for longer. Yes, the basics do matter. Not smoking, doing regular exercise and eating sensibly all play a role. Studies on centenarians consistently show this.
These studies also show that having fun, connections and purpose play a role too. We tend to ignore this as it is not a medical issue and there is no medical solution. It is interesting to look at those who are still active in their 70s and 80s to see if we can learn and apply any lessons.
The key here is not that we have to work, but we need to be enjoying what we do. Sure, if you can continue to get paid to do what you enjoy – bonus!
Tom Jones is touring at 83 as is Paul McCartney at 81. Jones told The Weekend Australian (September 21) “I would hate to retire”. He quotes Bob Hope describing enjoying what he was doing into his 90s. The key here is not that we have to work, but we need to be enjoying what we do. Sure, if you can continue to get paid to do what you enjoy – bonus!
In the same paper, Gene Simmons (74) is quoted “If god or whoever is in charge gives you only 24 hours of life, what are you going to do with it? Are you going to go out there, try to do some good…”. He concludes that the best thing to do is to live life well.
There is an adage which says that which can be measured will be. We can measure weight, cigarettes smoked or blood pressure. We cannot measure enjoyment, the value of a smile or touch of a hand. We cannot establish ‘guidelines’ or ‘best practice’ as what matters or is enjoyable to one person may not be to another. It is about what matters to us.
Human beings are more than a collection of atoms and molecules arranged into cells and organs. We need to remind ourselves of this. Simmons is right – live life well!