Exercise, a healthy diet, a gentle skincare regimen, and style can all contribute to one’s perception of age. To supplement our upcoming Health Fair at Westlake Porter Library, here are several resources related to healthy aging that are offered at our library. We regularly update our book and digital offerings as new research developments are made regarding the human body and the way it ages.
I’d like to start with The Mayo Clinic on Healthy Aging: An Easy and Comprehensive Guide To Keeping Your Body Young, Your Mind Sharp, and Your Spirit Fulfilled. It’s a new book for 2024 and contains a variety of trusted, expert opinions on the aging process. Other specialists like Dr. Mark Hyman and Dr. Sanjay Gupta offer ideas on healthy brain aging in our collection.
It’s also worth considering how spirituality and whether one feels that their life has purpose affects how we age. Deepak Chopra’s Quantum Body: The New Science of Living a Longer, Healthier, More Vital Life and The 100-Year Life: Living and Working in an Age of Longevity both look at these topics.
Community seems to help people live longer. Feeling connected to another human being, and creating meaning from the world around you, are key to longevity and healthy aging. Books like The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot by Marianne Cronin, The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, Age 83 1/2, and Rental Person Who Does Nothing are about the intersection of different ages of people – young and old – and how their worldviews affect each other.
I’d also like to highlight a personal favorite book of mine: Fresh Face, by Mandi Nyambi. Ms. Nyambi is a skin care specialist for Oprah Winfrey and other face-forward professionals who live in the public eye. Ms. Nyambi takes the time to clearly explain all the different types of serums and lotions that are often used in skin-care products and anti-aging formulas, why they work, or do not work. Her advice on how to keep your skin looking its best through a healthy diet– including notes about the vitamins and minerals that occur in fruits and vegetables, and how those support a glowing complexion – are especially helpful. Oprah always looks like she has amazing skin (just saying!) so I’m inclined to take Ms. Nyambi’s advice.
If you prefer magazines, check out our newest copies of Prevention magazine, Men’s Health, and a variety of women’s health and beauty magazines through our library website or in our Reading Room at Westlake Porter Library. Our Libby App, which is available for download through our library website, also contains a variety of health and exercise magazines in partnership with the Ohio Digital Library. The latest issues are at your fingertips! If you need help with Libby, come by our Ask Us Desk and we’d be happy to show you how to access the magazines on your phone or tablet.
Check out hoopla Digital, on the WPPL library website, to stream videos with guided yoga, chair yoga, strength, and balance exercises.
And for those (like me!) who still have a DVD player, we offer many yoga, strength and balance exercise DVDs for checkout with your WPPL card.
Keep an eye out in our Notes newsletter and our event calendar for exercise and health programs like Yoga, offered in our pavilion and meeting rooms year round. Stop by our service desks for a free copy of Notes.
While our library and its staff are no substitute for medical professionals, the library does offer a wide range of materials about healthy aging that will give you an idea of what topics you may want to discuss with a medical professional – how to support your healthy memory, keep your muscles working comfortably and flexibly, and how to stay sound in your body and mind. And we have books and magazines to show how to keep a glowing complexion and develop a personal style that makes you feel good in your own skin.
