Your Best is Yet to Come

Cheddar cheese and red wine both get better with age. Contrary to popular belief, your body does, too. Discover all the ways your best years are still ahead.

• Better skin. After 50, you can kiss acne and pimples goodbye as your skin’s oil-producing glands stop working overtime. Your skin may feel a little dry, so make sure you stay hydrated, which helps your skin’s elasticity. And, of course, wear sunscreen with at least SPF 30 year round to prevent skin cancer, opens new tab.
  • Bottom line: It’s your time to glow without the shine.
• Awesome sex. Multiple studies show that women over 40 have more satisfying sex than younger women. Your arousal level may decline when you go through menopause, opens new tab, but expect it to pick back up again afterwards. Having a physically and mentally healthy partner, getting enough rest, opens new tab and drinking fewer than three alcoholic beverages per week may also help you maintain an active sex life.
  • Bottom line: Enjoying sex well into your golden years is certainly in the cards.
• Fewer allergies. If you suffer through allergy, opens new tab season every year, there’s good news. As you get older, your seasonal allergy symptoms decrease. The down side is that relief comes at the expense of a weakened immune system, which happens with age. You may be more susceptible to other illnesses.
  • Bottom line: Keeping up with annual visits to your primary care doctor, opens new tab is your first line of defense.
• More self-confidence. Life experience and wisdom come with age. As a result, you’ll likely find yourself brimming with more self-confidence than you’ve ever felt before. You might notice that you react more calmly to conflict. And when it comes to your health, you’ll pick up on changes faster because you’re more in tune with your body.
  • Bottom line: What others think of you is no longer a concern.
• Added brain power. As you grow older, so may your worries over memory loss. But, memory loss and aging don’t always go hand-in-hand. Think of your brain as any other muscle: you can train it to stay healthy and strong. Learning a new skill, reading every day, working word puzzles, and staying social can help boost your brain power.
  • Bottom line: Building your brain skills is a lifelong endeavor.