Vitality

Once upon a time, the usual image of retirement was one of a couple filling their days with leisurely, enjoyable activities. They went on long vacations they'd never had time for, read all the books they'd been stacking up over the years, began a new hobby or joined gardening or church groups. Other than volunteering, work just wasn't part of the picture.

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But that vision has gone the way of giant cell phones. As you'd expect from a generation that changed so many aspects of our lives, the boomers (77 million people born between 1946 and 1964) are approaching retirement in a very different way. They're working past the usual retirement age, and though going into an office everyday can keep your mind sharp, more and more boomers are working for another reason entirely: financial security.

Results of an Associated Press/LifeGoesStrong.com poll, released earlier this month, revealed s

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Vitamin D provides a wide range of health benefits. It is effective in preventing rickets and treating other bone diseases such as osteoporosis. According to the Mayo Clinic, getting enough vitamin D may prevent high blood pressure and protect against certain types of cancer. It may also promote weight loss for women. A growing body of research links heart health to sufficient vitamin D. Most recently, a large-scale study in the American Journal of Cardiology discovered that boosting vitamin D levels in heart patients who were deficient cut their risk of death by 60%, among other significant findings.

Related link: 6 Heart disease risk factors

Getting enough vitamin D

It's estimated that 30-50% of Americans suffer from vitamin D deficiency. The human body produces vitamin D, which is actually a hormone, when exposed to sunlight. However, during the winter, it is impossible to get enough exposure anywhere north of San Francisco or Philadelphia. People in southern states who s

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By Kerri-Ann Jennings, M.S., R.D., Associate Nutrition Editor at EatingWell Magazine

As a registered dietitian and associate nutrition editor at EatingWell Magazine, I know that herbs and spices do more than simply add flavor to food. They let you cut down on some less-healthy ingredients, such as salt, added sugars and saturated fat, and some have inherent health benefits, many of which Joyce Hendley reported on for EatingWell Magazine.

Modern science is beginning to uncover the ultimate power of spices and herbs, as weapons against illnesses from cancer to Alzheimer's disease. "We're now starting to see a scientific basis for why people have been using spices medicinally for thousands of years," says Bharat Aggarwal, Ph.D., professor at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and author of Healing Spices (Sterling, 2011).

Aggarwal notes that in his native India, where spices tend to be used by the handful, incidence of diet-related diseases like hear

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Maybe you forgot something basic, like your phone number, your age, or the name of your husband. Or you might have begun a conversation only to forget what you were talking about halfway through a sentence. If so, you may have been the victim of a "senior moment" - a momentary lapse of memory or mental function. Over time, it's normal to experience age-related memory loss, but many people fear that senior moments are a sign of something being wrong.

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Here's the good news: While senior moments can sometimes be frightening, they are not usually indicative of anything serious. Experts agree that these memory lapses do occur more often as we age, but they are usually due to stress caused by trying to think about too many things at once (just look at Rick Perry's debate blunder). Other causes for senior moments include natural hormonal changes, mood fluctuations, and a decrease in the number o

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Can't decide whether to order wine with dinner? Go ahead -- it may keep your memory going strong as you grow older. What you drink could help your mind stay sharp and ward off Alzheimer's disease and dementia. Try these five brain-boosting sippers:

How old is your brain? Play this mind game to find out.

Wine

Light to moderate amounts of alcohol may help protect you from age-related cognitive declines or even Alzheimer's disease. In one study, wine drinkers were up to 53 percent less likely to suffer memory loss than teetotalers.

Researchers are still teasing out how booze helps your memory. Some say it protects against inflammation-producing proteins in the brain that are linked to Alzheimer's. Other findings suggest moderate drinking boosts cerebral blood flow by dilating vessels in the brain.

Wine is fine, but beer or even your favorite cocktail can nourish your noggin, too. Just be sure to enjoy in moderation: one drink a day for women, two for men.

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