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Since the expulsion from the Garden of Eden, mankind has been obsessed with finding the fountain of youth. Through the centuries, the gamut of elixirs, charms, diets, and exercises have run their course with little to show. Ultimately, the quest is futile.
Notwithstanding, succeeding generations of people fifty and older inherit this magnificent obsession. Few of us can/will say no to promises of longevity; yet before investing your life in this magnificent obsession, please consider that the realities of the artificially extended life are not to be idealized. Pilgrim beware! This millennium is witness to the marriage of technology and medicine, and it is bearing fruit. Today life is routinely extended by timely medical interventions.
However, these interventions do not recapture youth, but serve to advance decrement. Indeed, those who would rush to participate in this brave new world are destined for dependency if not on family, on society. This is because science is responsible for the quantity of life and, the patient is responsible for the quality of life.
To be the heroes of our own lives, we must act when in health. The short fleeting season between 50 and 65 years of age is, for many, the last opportunity to self-determine and prepare for the inevitable ADL declines associated with aging. This phase is the season to consider Long Term Care Insurance.