Ageing well
In considering that, the policy wonks at the DWP might usefully read a book called ‘The Changing Mind: A Neuroscientist’s Guide to Ageing Well’.
Written by distinguished American neuroscientist Daniel Levitin, it delves into the ways in which older people can stave off the inevitable, at least for a few years.
It contains some unsurprising stuff about keeping fit, and recommends running through woods and fields rather than going to the gym (which will come as a merciful relief to many of us); getting out and meeting people, instead of spending time on Facebook et al; and knocking up an oily fish dish rather than popping a daily Omega-3 tablet.
But one of his most forceful arguments is about retirement. In essence, the advice is “don’t”. It’s a disaster. If you can’t keep working, volunteer instead.
The book also contains some intriguing info on the sex lives of seniors. He claims that conservative men stop having sex in their late sixties, while liberals go on into their eighties. So that’s the last time I vote Tory…
And, bizarrely, that castrated men live 14 years longer on average. I have half a mind to write to Royal London and declare I have no intention of retiring at 75, and and am off to a clinic in Morocco for a deeply personal surgical procedure.
