There’s no denying that our health concerns change as we age. In our 20s, we really don’t seem to have any, but by our mid-30s we often start to notice little aches and other issues that settle into us as we hit our 40s. This can be a bit disheartening as most of us secretly wish that we never had to feel what it means to get older. Unfortunately, there’s no cure for aging as yet and as a result we need to make peace with things. Our health tends to take the most notable shifts in our 50s when many long-term life habits and heritages begin to flare up and let us know what our major concerns will be going forward. These ailments are frequently things that are worth worrying about as they can be bad if left unchecked. You need to know what the potential dangers are if you want to be prepared though. We’ve got a quick guide to the major things you’ll want to talk with your doctor about watching for in your 50s.

Weight Gain and Obesity
In many ways, many other potential conditions in your 50s will flow directly from these paired problems. A slowing metabolism combined with hormonal changes mean that we’re all more inclined to gain weight in our 50s. This makes it easy to get above a healthy weight in a relatively short amount of time if we’re not careful. We end up suffering from difficulty in losing weight in our 50s for the same reason. Obesity is a problem at any age, but it becomes a particular issue in our 50s. Weight around the midsection is linked with various ailments including heart disease and diabetes. You generally want to focus on healthy diet and exercise with your doctor in your 50s for this very reason. It is even more important than it was before. Making the effort can help curtail this issue and others before they become a true problem though. It is important to note that it will take work and dedication to get the best results.

Early Onset Alzheimer’s
The gradual loss of self that various forms of dementia entail are among the most terrifying things that we can consider having to go through. It is understandably unnerving to contemplate yourself slowly slipping away, yes, but we can’t afford not to remember that it is a chance. The semi-positive news is that this problem isn’t particularly common. You’ll likely only need to pay close attention if one of your relatives has been shown to have the disease. This is because of the clear genetic factor when it comes to how quickly this sort of issue settles into a person. You can also do a lot to help prepare your mind and keep it healthy even if you notice the beginning of such issues. Staying mentally active with a mentally demanding activity, regularly socializing, and teaching yourself no skills can go a long way towards helping keep you grounded despite such an issue. Your doctor will have further recommendations to help as well.

Osteoarthritis
Aches and pains are nothing new by the time we reach our 50s. It isn’t that they dominate our lives so much as they are relatively familiar at that point in our lives. Old injuries flaring up paired with our body reminding us of what we’ve asked of it over the years just make things a little more difficult than we’d like some mornings. There is a real threat of forms of arthritis starting on our 50s though. Osteoarthritis is particular is quite common. It is centered around the joints and caused by the gradual breakdown of the cartilage that cushions our joints. Being overweight plays a major role in worsening this issue, but it can happen regardless of your weight. The knees and hips tend to be the most commonly affected because they are how your body distributes your upright weight. You’ll need to talk to your doctor about the best ways to manage these symptoms. Weight loss combined with lifestyle changes and medication will generally be all that is required to make things a little easier on us though.

Our 50s aren’t so much when our body starts “falling apart” like some people might say, but they are when we need to be even more mindful of our health than we were before. The body just can’t care for itself as effectively on its own. We have to make the effort to help it. A healthy lifestyle combined with regular visits to your doctor will help you minimize any issues and isolate potential problems before they get out of hand. Early treatment goes a long way towards helping everything we’ve discussed. So consider starting to see your doctor regularly in your 50s. You’ll thank yourself later.