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By Stacy Haller

Healthy aging—what a wonderful concept to celebrate during September’s “Healthy Aging Month.” It’s easiest to practice healthy living when the blush of summer is still on our faces and in our gardens. The perfect time to log steps on our pedometers and share new leafy-green salad recipes.

There is so much to gain from adopting a healthier lifestyle. Yet, for many ����Ӱҵns, the term “healthy aging” can seem like a contradiction.��

That’s because advancing age, by itself, represents��the��major risk factor for the onset of many diseases our nation faces.�� That’s certainly true for Alzheimer’s disease, macular degeneration, and glaucoma, which are diseases my organization fights.��

You’ll rarely see these conditions listed on a death certificate (even though recent studies suggest Alzheimer’s is now the third major cause of mortality in the U.S., behind heart disease and cancer). Instead, they threaten to take the enjoyment out of our hard-won later years, by robbing us of our mind and sight.