Living Well

Keeping healthy is something we all need to think about and take personal responsibility for.

Many of us can expect to live into our mid-80s, and many people believe a gradual decline in physical and mental health is an inevitable part of ageing. Yet so much of how we age is down to lifestyle.

The good news is making small changes to our lifestyles now can improve our health right away and double our chances of staying healthy as we get older. It is never too late to start.

There are benefits for everyone if we stay fit and healthy for longer.  Healthy people generally have a better quality of life, are independent for longer, take an active part in their local community and have less need for health and social care support as they grow older.

  • Recent research has found 41% of adults aged 40 to 60 in England walk less than 10 minutes continuously each month at a brisk pace. 
  • Getting 10 minutes of brisk walking into your day is a simple way to improve your health.
  • The Active 10 app can help you fit more walking into your day.

Top Tips

Here are Public Health England's top tips for making a change:

  • Eat well: What you eat and how much, is so important for your health and your waistline. 
  • Get active: Moving is good for your body and mind.
  • Quit smoking: Stopping is one of the best thing you can do for your health
  • Drink less: Cutting back on alcohol is good for your health
  • Kickstart your health: Checking your body's most important systems are all running smoothly 
  • Dealing with stress: Relaxing helps you feel good and function well
  • Sleep problems: It is important to get a good night's sleep

Better Health

Our busy lives do not always make it easy to be healthy. That is why, by the time we reach our 40s and 50s, many of us will have dramatically increased our chances of becoming ill in later life. Whether we are eating the wrong things, drinking more than we should, continuing to smoke or just not being active enough, all of these things can add up to an unhealthy you.

Take a few minutes to complete the free 'Better Health - How are you?' quiz to see how you score and find out where you can take a little action to make a big difference to your health. You can also use the online Heart Age tool to calculate your ‘heart age’ based on age and lifestyle. 

Public Health England’s ‘Better Health’ website provides tools, support and encouragement to help you make simple changes to kickstart your health.  

The good news is making small changes to our lifestyles now can improve our health right away and double our chances of staying healthy as we get older. It is never too late to start the fight back to a healthier you.

People aged 40-74 are also eligible for a free NHS Health Check.

NHS.UK

You can get health and wellbeing information from the NHS website. The site provides a wealth of information on many subjects, including NHS services in England, medical conditions/treatments and healthy living. 

You can also search for your local GP, dentist, pharmacy and other health services. 

Healthier Families

The Healthier Families website also gives practical advice on eating well nd moving more. 

One You Kent

If you would like information on health matters, such as stopping smoking, maintaining a healthy weight or getting a health check, please take a look at the One You Kent website. The Kent Health and Wellbeing website is a directory of information about a range of services to enhance health and wellbeing covering: 

Kent Care and Support

Please see Kent County Council's Care and Support pages to find out where to get help if you, or someone you care for, needs support due to illness, disability, old age or low income. 

Kent Community Navigators

If you, or someone you care for, are over 50 years old and want to stay independent in your own home, community navigators can offer a range of support including managing your money and benefits, maintaining and adapting your home to your needs and planning the support you need. Care navigators are based with local voluntary organisations around Kent - please see the website for details. 

Kent Health 

Please see Kent County Council's Health pages for information on local services for Kent residents with specific health needs, such as dementia, mental and sexual health, and also the county council’s responsibility for public health. 

 

 

« Back to Health and Wellbeing Home Page