Pasadena City College Psychology Nutrition and Exercise Discussion

Discussion Prompt

According to the CDC

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, the current average life expectancy is 78.7 years old. Although there are some who live much longer, even up to 120 years. In your opinion:

• What factors contribute to those who live well beyond the average age?
• Consider lifelong healthcare regiments, attitudes, and behaviors. Are these factors in agreement with what psychologists find to be common in centenarians?

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First Discussion Reply

According to the CDC the factors that contribute to average life expectancy from The way they eat, to the way they are born, and all the genetics behind it. Also adds things to people who do drugs and certain ways of living. I think psychologist would view life expectancy on how the person is and how they develop. I feel like their attachment style would be kind of the way they develop. I also feel like the way they build the relationships and maneuver their adulthood. And to think about from a psychologist point of you would be Ericksons stages. And all the different stages of that person may hit during their life expectancy. How much change the way they view things and how they react. When thinking about attitudes and behaviors of people with life expectancy and how they may live even up to 120 years, I feel like most people are shocked and are not used to this. It’s also new concept that our brains will have to adjust to understanding that life expectancy is not beyond what it used to be. Because right now our old older adults are view around 60 and higher. From the new life expectancy it would be be higher our old and older. It would also effect retirement age and how our bodies change.

Santrock, J. (2016). McGraw-Hill. Life-Span Development. Eighteenth Edition.

Second Discussion Reply

The factors that contribute to a lifelong life are exercise and nutrition. The benefits of exercise can lead to longevity of life up to 50 percent just by walking at least 150 minutes a week. It also improves brain, cognitive, and affective functioning by processing information more effectively (Santrock, 2021). Exercise has many benefits, including the prevention of chronic disease, increased effectiveness of treatment of many illnesses, cellular functioning, improved system functioning, and other benefits. Nutrition is also a significant role in living a longer life by being able to maintain an adequate nutrition by not gaining unhealthy weight and making the decision if you want to take vitamins to slow down the aging process.

Yes, it is common in centenarians to have these lifelong health care regiments, attitudes, and behaviors. An example stated in the textbook Life-span development by John Santrock states, “Ruth Climer was a physical education teacher for many years and later competed in the Senior Olympics. To live to be 100, she says, it is important to stay focused on what is good now and not give in to negative thoughts. Ruth also believes that staying busy and always moving forward are keys to longevity” (Santrock, 2021). As seen in the example, Ruth is a centenarian and is giving tips on how she was able to live so long, and one of them was to not give in to negative thoughts meaning to be happy and enjoy life with a positive attitude. Behavior also play a role in this by centenarians being able to control situations and not stressing out.

References: Santrock, J. W. (2021). Life-span development. McGraw-Hill Education.