English in a pill – Angielski w pigułce, Lesson 16

How to live up to 100?

A centenarian is a person who has achieved the age of 100 years or more. The numbers of those celebrating a triple digit birthday are dramatically increasing in every industrialized nation the world over. This population is expanding so much that the centenarian is becoming the globe's most rapidly increasing age group. The scientists estimate that the largest centenarian populations in 2050 would be in China with 472 000, the US with 298 000, Japan with 272 000 and India with 111 000.

Indeed, what does it take to live to the ripe age of 100? Scientists have listed 10 commandments for a long life. They say that if you follow the simple rules, you have a fair chance of joining the growing number of centenarians across the globe. The conclusion is that taking good care of the physical lifestyle - food, exercise - is a small part of the trick. Some scientists believe that spiritual and social reasons can be more important.

The first rule for longer life is exposure to certain "poisons" that may help to reverse the ageing process and boost life expectancy by up to 15 years.

The article said that small doses of "stressors" normally considered dangerous to humans could actually aid the body's self-repair system and prolong life. Scientists included X-rays, alcohol or mild sunburn cases as possible positive factors.

The second commandment is remaining sociable, with a happy marriage and good family life being essential for health. Studies have shown that marriage can add as much as seven years to a man's life and two years to a woman's life.

The place where you live is the third rule: there are several places across the globe that are conducive to man living up to the age of 100. For example, the Japanese island of Okinawa is generally considered the longevity capital of the world, with more than 400 centenarians in a population of 1,3 million.

The fourth rule is that so-called vices such as wine, chocolate and sleep have a good effect because a little of what you like can do you good rather than harm.

The fifth rule says you should exercise the brain to stay active - play Sudoku, for example.

The sixth commandment follows the age-old adage that prevention is better than cure, urging aspiring centenarians to go for cancer scans if there was a history of the disease in the family.

The seventh rule is simple: watch what you eat.

Rule eight urges people to put more excitement into their lives. Merely living longer is not worth doing unless it is an enjoyable experience.

Rule nine advises those seeking a long life to embrace any new technologies.

The final commandment is to smile and feel happier with one's lot in life.

WORDS

• First aid kit - Apteczka
• a centenarian- stulatek
• a digit - cyfra
• ripe - dojrzały
• a commandment - przykazanie
• spiritual - duchowy
• reverse - odwrotny
• expectancy - średnia długość życia
• conducive - sprzyjający czemuś
• longevity - długowieczność
• vice - wada, nałóg
• an adage - mądrość, przysłowie
• to urge - namawiać, zachęcać
• lot - los

A JOKE

Many Ailments

An elderly man went to the doctor for a visit. - Doc - he says. - I am so stricken. I have chest pains, headaches, back pains, nausea, arthritis, constipation, stomach cramps, earaches, burning in the eyes, congested lungs...

- Sir - said the doctor. - You complain you have so many things. What don't you have?

- Teeth - the man answered.

an ailment - dolegliwość; to be stricken - być cierpiącym stricken - być cierpiącym

(Source: IANS)

„Farmacja i ja”, luty 2009