If you’re over 50, you’ve probably made, and perhaps broken, a lot of New Year’s resolutions by now.
Maybe you’ve stopped making them altogether.
But setting a goal related to your health at the start of a new year can still be a good idea.
Especially if you make it a realistic, achievable, and truly helpful one.
With that in mind, here’s a list of resolutions you can likely stick to, inspired by recent findings from the University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging and the Michigan Poll on Healthy Aging.
“Whether you call them resolutions, goals, or just helpful ideas for everyone over 50, these are actions that our poll shows many older adults aren’t doing yet, but could do relatively easily to improve their health and well-being,” says Erica Solway, Ph.D., M.S.W., M.P.H., the poll’s deputy director and an aging expert at the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation.
1: Complete an important health care planning form
This is probably the easiest and most important resolution on this list; it only takes a few minutes but can make a world of difference for you and your loved ones down the road.
The form is called a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care, sometimes called a DPOA for short. It lets you say which person you want to make medical decisions for you if you can’t make them for yourself, either temporarily or permanently.
It’s a vital tool, but the poll found that only 27% of people over 50 have filled one out.
No matter your age or health status, it’s a good idea to have a DPOA for health care, and to make sure it’s added to your electronic health record at your doctor’s office or health system, says Solway.
Solway notes that a DPOA for health care is different from a living will; you don’t have to write out exactly what kinds of care you would or wouldn’t want, though it’s a good idea to talk with your chosen person about your wishes.
2: Make your home safer for ‘aging in place’
Most older adults say they want to remain in their current home as long as they are able—which experts call “aging in place.”
But the poll shows that less than half of people age 65 and older have taken steps to make this possible, either by making age-friendly changes to their home, or by moving to a home with features that will help them continue to live independently even if their abilities change.
If you want to age in place, Solway notes that making modifications to avoid falls and reduce barriers is important.
Switching doorknobs to lever-style handles, installing grab bars in showers, removing throw rugs and other trip hazards, increasing lighting in hallways, and adding railings along stairs can improve home safety and are relatively easy to do.
Take it up a notch by investing in a walk-in shower, converting a first-floor room to a bedroom, or making sure your home has at least one entrance that doesn’t require steps. Or start the new year by planning for a move to an age-friendly apartment, condo or community.
3: Connect with friends—in person or virtually
With the holiday period coming to an end, now’s the time to make a plan to see your close friends in the new year. You could do it by planning a regular time to meet up for a walk, coffee or a meal; planning a trip to visit loved ones who don’t live nearby; or scheduling a monthly virtual get-together with one or more friends.
Don’t just say you’ll do it—put the wheels in motion to make it happen.
The poll shows that 75% of people aged 50 and older say they have enough close friends, but that the percentages were much lower among people who say their physical or mental health is fair or poor.
In addition, among all adults age 50 and older, 75% were interested in making new friends. When thinking about making new friends, consider people of different ages too. Among older adults with at least one close friend, 46% said a close friend is from a different generation, defined as being at least 15 years older or 15 years younger.
Connecting with friends can help ward off feelings of loneliness and isolation—and can be important for your health, too. Older adults who had more frequent contact with their close friends were less likely to report a lack of companionship or feeling isolated. A third of people over 50 said a friend had encouraged them to get a symptom checked out by a medical professional or had helped them when they were sick or injured.
4: Get savvy about spotting AI fakes and scams
With the boom in artificial intelligence tools, more and more older adults are interacting with AI in their day-to-day lives.
Despite the benefits of AI, many older adults say they’re wary of its potential for harm, the U-M poll showed. In all, 81% of people age 50 and over say they want to know more about AI-related risks, and half said they aren’t confident they can detect when information generated by AI is incorrect.
AI-generated scams, and “deepfake” videos and photos, pose a hazard to everyone, but especially older adults. People who can’t tell that something they see online or on social media is inaccurate or completely made up may share it with others, spreading misinformation.
This year, take time to learn more about AI’s benefits for healthy aging and potential harms through courses and videos offered by reputable sources.
The University of Michigan has a collection of videos on the basics of AI. AARP, which focuses on people over 50, has a whole collection of articles on AI’s benefits, perils and ways to be prepared so you don’t get deceived. AARP chapters around the country are also offering AI-related events; find your chapter here.
5: Prep for severe weather and power outages
Three out of every four older adults have lived through at least one extreme weather event in the last two years, the poll found.
Yet very few have talked with a health care professional about how to prepare for a weather-related emergency. Your New Year’s resolution could be to ask your doctor or pharmacist how to make sure you have enough medication on hand in case you need to leave home suddenly or can’t get to a pharmacy, or to ask your electric utility how to maintain access to power for your home medical equipment, including how to get to emergency shelters.
Solway notes that it’s never too late to prepare for extremes of temperature or precipitation, or for impacts like wildfires and extended power outages. The national website Ready.gov offers many tips for specific things to do now, including a page specifically for older adults.
Even simple steps like buying bottled water and non-perishable ready-to-eat food, downloading a tool to your smartphone such as the American Red Cross Emergency app, or signing up for your local government’s emergency alert notifications can be a great start.
6: Take simple steps for safer driving
The poll revealed this year that more than 80% of people age 65 and older get behind the wheel of a vehicle at least once a week. Most of them feel confident that they can drive safely now, but fewer express confidence in their ability to drive safely in the future.
But the poll also showed that many older adults haven’t planned ahead for a time when their abilities may change and they should hang up their keys. Very few knew that it was possible to create an advance driving directive which designates someone to help with future decisions about stopping driving.
The state of Michigan offers a website just for older drivers and their loved ones and health care providers; Solway recommends looking at it and filling out the advance driving directive available there.
Also, if you choose to use cannabis, it’s also very important to avoid driving after partaking. The poll found that 20% of people over 50 who use cannabis also said they had driven within the first two hours of doing so. This can be very dangerous, not just for the driver but for their passengers and for everyone else on the road around them.
7: Discover a little-known gem for older adults: Your area agency on aging
Here’s a super-easy New Year’s resolution that could help you and older adults you love: find out the name of the Area Agency on Aging that serves your city or region, and explore what they have to offer.
Just go to eldercare.acl.gov/home and enter your information, or call toll-free 800-677-1116.
A U-M poll found that 67% of people age 50 and older weren’t familiar with Area Agencies on Aging, which are federally supported hubs for resources, programs and supports for older adults in local communities around the country. Individual agencies go by different names.
Even if you don’t think you need a service right now, take the time to find your AAA’s name and website, and to follow them on social media platforms. If you have an older friend or relative in your area or another area who may need services, you can also help them find out about events and programs available to them.
8: Get the most out of your doctor’s appointments
Nearly all people over 50 see a doctor, nurse practitioner, physician assistant or other health care provider at least once a year. Recent U-M poll findings offer some insights into what you can do to get the most out of these encounters.
For instance, you might want to consider bringing a family member or friend along as a “care companion” to your next appointment, whether it’s in person or via telehealth. The poll found that 38% of older adults who had a health care appointment had done this in the past year, and that 92% of them felt it was helpful. Your companion can take notes, ask questions or just offer emotional support or help with getting to your appointment.
If you have a health condition or disability that makes it harder to do certain things, you may also be entitled to help from your clinic or health system to make your appointments more accessible to you.
But the poll found that only 18% of people with such conditions have received this kind of help—officially called an accommodation—from their health care provider.
Don’t be afraid to ask for something you’re legally eligible for, such as assistance with transferring from one surface to another, removing physical barriers to accessing care, or ensuring effective communication about your care—including help with accessing your online patient portal.
9: If you’re taking aspirin daily, see if you can stop
This easy resolution is for those who have been taking aspirin frequently or daily in hopes that it will reduce their risk of a heart attack or stroke.
As researchers have learned more about the impacts of aspirin on the cardiovascular system in recent years, the advice for using it has changed.
These days, daily aspirin use is mainly recommended for people who have a history of a heart attack, heart disease, or a stroke or mini-stroke.
If that’s not you, talk to your doctor or other health care provider about whether you should be taking aspirin.
In the absence of a clear cardiovascular risk, daily aspirin may raise your risk of internal bleeding more than it will reduce your chance of heart issues.
The U-M poll finds that nearly 1 in 6 older adults take aspirin even though they do not have any heart disease or stroke in their past. The findings also suggest that many people have heard of potential benefits from aspirin but not the bleeding risks.
If you care about wellness, please read studies about nutrients that could combat inflammation in older people, and essential foods for healthy aging.
For more health information, please see recent studies about the link between processed foods and chronic diseases, and a simple diet change for a healthier life after 65.
Source: Michigan Medicine.
