Statistics don't lie, as the old saying goes. If that is true then you could easily come to the conclusion that nursing or retirement homes are bad for your health. The majority of folks who go to these intensive care facilities live less than 2 years.
Most of us would hope that is the case if we end up in a nursing home. Personally, I'd like to check out on the day I was admitted!
I'm not referring to assisted living facilities. These are where you normally have your own apartment or town home, nurses stop by to check on you, and other safety features are built in. Those type of projects actually have fairly good records where longevity is concerned.
What we are focusing on in this article are those places where all manner of human decency are taken from you. Granted, some of us get so bad that we (humankind) have not yet come up with much of an alternative. However, there are some things you can do to greatly reduce your chances of ending up in a place like that!
First of all, take as good of care of yourself as possible. Get up and move around. Don't overdo it, but be active, and your golden years will be much better! Look into natural and alternative supplements that can add quality to your life (one such supplement now getting great reviews, even by many in the medical profession is Resveratrol).
The other thing you can do is to invest in a good Long-Term Care (LTC) policy. In my opinion the good ones are those that will even pay a family member to live with you in your home and take care of you. Many times when older folks get in bad health, they expect their children to put their own lives on hold and come back home to take care of them. Many of us would be willing to do that, if we could somehow keep an income in the process. A good LTC plan can do just that!
I used to write a LTC plan that offered all your money back in ten years if you did not use any benefits. I now have a few clients who have received cash back after a decade. Most of them kept the LTC plan in force. I hope they make it another ten years! These type of plans may no longer be available, but check with your agent to be sure.
Another thing that statistics show can add to a long life is to have a good income in your retirement years. Those with more money tend to live longer. Perhaps this is because they are more active (with travel etc.). Maybe it is because they have more to live for, or perhaps it is because they can afford better health care? Whatever the reason, statistics show that you can live a lot better in your "Golden" years with a little planning!
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