Living Longer For Dummies by Walter Bortz, M.D., Living Longer For Dummies® Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River St. Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 www.wiley.com Copyright ” 2001 Hungry Minds, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book, including interior design, cover design, and icons, may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, by any means (electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher. Library of Congress Control Number: 00-112172 ISBN: 0-7645-5335-6 Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1B/QU/QU/QR/IN Distributed in the United States by Hungry Minds, Inc. Distributed by CDG Books Canada Inc. for Canada; by Transworld Publishers Limited in the United Kingdom; by IDG Norge Books for Norway; by IDG Sweden Books for Sweden; by IDG Books Australia Publishing Corporation Pty. 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About the Author Walter Bortz, M.D., is a specialist in internal medicine with the Palo Alto Medical Foundation in California and is a clinical associate professor of medicine at Stanford University. He was also the co-chairman of the American Medical Association’s Task Force on Aging and the past president of the American Geriatrics Society. Dr. Bortz has published over 100 scholarly papers in academic and medical journals as well as articles in The New York Times, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, Town & Country, and Runner’s World. His best-selling books include We Live Too Short and Die Too Long and Dare To Be 100. Dr. Bortz is also a lecturer and wellness advocate. At 70 years of age, Dr. Bortz is an avid runner and has completed over 20 marathons, including Boston 2000, and he is the grandfather of nine. Dedication I am persuaded by whoever observed that a person’s life achieves less significance by what he/she does than by that which that life causes to happen in others. I dedicate, therefore, this book to our grandchildren, Kellen, Taylor, Ryan, Don, Rosie, Tenly, Carson, Emily, and Eddie, and to your own, now and future. I hope their lives are the better by virtue of what we have learned and pass on. Author’s Acknowledgments The sources of this book are many. First, there was Carol Mann, agent, who was there at the right time and has remained a steady advocate. Then, Julie Clark, super-transcriptionist, who took my often illegible yellow tablet scribbles and made them ink on white. Warm thanks. Then the Hungry Minds team, particularly Michael Cunningham, who translated my professorese to dummy-ease. Thank you. Family all ways and always. Patients, friends, colleagues, and many others, thanks. Finally, I want to acknowledge books. Next to people, books are my most treasured asset. Books of all ages and content. My home study overflows with them. Aging invites warm comment from scientists, poets, economists, ethicists, politicians. Gardner, Finch, Friedan, Cousins, Cassell, Heilbrunn, Carter, Delaneys, Sagan, DeChardin, James, Evans, Erikson, Pauling, Gould, Hayflick, Carstensen, Tolstoi, and Sheehan mix freely on my shelves. Books nourish and inspire. I pray the electronic age does not cause their extinction. You can’t cradle a computer. The computer can’t be your good friend. Books are — thank you books. Publisher’s Acknowledgments We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Online Registration Form located at www.hungryminds.com . Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:Editorial Project Editor: Linda Brandon Acquisitions Editor: Michael Cunningham Copy Editor: Corey Dalton Acquisitions Coordinator: Stacy Klein Technical Editor: Jean Macdonald, R.N. Senior Permissions Editor: Carmen Krikorian Editorial Manager: Christine Beck Editorial Assistant: Jennifer Young Cover Photos: The International Stock, ” Peter Iangone; Hi-Res in production Production Project Coordinator: Jennifer Bingham Layout and Graphics: Kelly Hardesty, Jacque Schneider, Julie Trippetti,