Last night Nataliya and I attended an 80th celebratory party for one of our wonderful patients. M.C. (no, this is not MC Hammer, but I am using “MC” as opposed to her full name to provide some element of privacy!) and her husband threw an amazing party at their lovely home. Many friends, family members and neighbors (and her doctor!) gathered together to celebrate and pay tribute to this very wonderful woman.
When Nataliya and I first arrived, M.C. greeted us and apologized for being “sweaty” as she had just gotten off the dance floor. We then went over to say “hi” to her husband and he informed us that in an area around the pool, there was a booth set up with a power point presentation displaying photos covering the 80 years of M.C.’s life. This was a real treat, being able to see her baby picture from the 1940’s and then see pictures showing many great trips, family events and other milestone periods/events of her life.
I suppose as a doctor in my chosen field of internal medicine, I sort of get a skewed version of people turning 80 years old because the people that come see me at age 80 are usually coming in with a myriad of medical problems (unless the visit is for a physical exam). My 80 year old patients are usually not saying “hi” to me after sweating from dancing. The “usual” is that the sweating is coming from a heart/lung issue or infection.
The point: Turning age 80 (or 60, 70, 90) can look far different for people based on health issues. In the case of seeing M.C. last night, the person celebrating a milestone birthday was dancing, active, energetic and looking every bit as beautiful as her pictures from the 1960’s and 1970’s. She has maintained her health.
Effective weight control will dramatically increase the odds of being able to enjoy the “golden years” with travel, participation, engaging in your hobbies and celebrating super family events. Not having the co-morbidities of poor weight control will provide not only internal organ health but also allow the “look” to be younger and more vibrant as opposed to an aesthetic look of old/frail.
Congratulations M.C…We look forward to seeing you dancing at your 90th!