RealAge: Are You as Young as You Can Be? (Paperback)

~ (Author) "As a doctor, I have often felt I was fighting an uphill battle..." (more)
Key Phrases: arterial aging, unnecessary aging, immune system aging, United States, Age Reducing, Journal of the American Medical Association (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Your biological age may be a lot different from your chronological age--for better or worse. Dr. Michael Roizen, a preventive gerontologist at the University of Chicago who appears perennially in the "1,000 Best Doctors in the U.S." listings, says that with the help of his RealAge program, you can reduce your biological age by up to 20 years.

He's compiled a list of 100 health-related factors, among them tobacco and alcohol use, diet, prescription and over-the-counter drug use, your parents' health, even pet ownership and the highest educational level completed by your spouse, and worked all these into a quiz to determine your "real age." If you've taken your health for granted, be prepared for a shock. He then explains how to follow a personalized age-reduction plan using a range of methods, from quick fixes (use a helmet while bicycling), to moderately easy changes (avoid sun and radon exposure), all the way to the most difficult changes (reduce the stress in your life). Emotional issues are given as much attention as physical ones; Roizen says, for example, that seeing a psychologist to help work through serious personal problems can reduce your chronological age by 8 to 16 years alone.

RealAge may appeal to Fountain of Youth seekers, but will be especially useful for folks who are out of shape and too overwhelmed to start a fitness plan, and for those who are understandably confused by the wealth of contradictory health reports in the news. Dr. Roizen has done an excellent job of organizing and explaining essential health information, from defining health concepts such as blood pressure (and explaining how to lower it) to distilling facts about diet, supplements, and herbs. Far from faddish, RealAge clearly presents only advice that's been proven effective in clinical trials. This is preventive medicine at its best. --Erica Jorgensen --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

A preventive gerontologist at the University of Chicago, Roizen distinguishes between biological and chronological age and shows you how to knock 20 years off the former.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks (April 24, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060930756
• ISBN-13: 978-0060930752
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #644,566 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars STOP THINKING TRADITIONALLY ABOUT AGE!, April 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: RealAge: Are You as Young as You Can Be? (Hardcover)

I had fun taking the test, more fun finding out that I am six years younger than my chronological age, and even more fun telling people that! However, I already know that having a healthy life style, exercising, eating well, relieving stress and a great marriage are all things that keep me feeling and looking younger. I found the rest of the book a little disappointing, because each chapter repeats, although in much more detail, the items on the test. This is a good book for someone who wants a general overview of things to do to be healthy and problems that an unhealthy life style can cause. Practicing what Dr. Roizen suggests takes time, you may need more detail and want to review what you should do with your own advisors. I also suggest you read another new book that will help you understand why it is difficult for some people to change their life habits, called THE 2,000 PERCENT SOLUTION, by Mitchell, Coles and Metz. The first half of the book talks about our bad habits or "stalls", like THE TRADITION STALL (I grew up on lasagna or chicken soup and matzoh balls, or bread and butter - and I like those foods) or The Misconception Stall (I don't have time to exercise or meditate, when you will find that if you do, you begin to do things so much better, you have created the time). The second half shares eight steps to make progress at 20 times the usual rate. If you read REAL AGE and THE 2,000 PERCENT SOLUTION together, you will develop ideas to get "younger and better" faster!

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars VERY HELPFUL, December 15, 1999

By	a reader (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: RealAge: Are You as Young as You Can Be? (Hardcover)

Thanks to this book I've reduced my age from 34 to 29, and have more energy than I have in years. The beauty of Roizen's program is that some of the steps are extremely easy, like just taking an aspirin. Others, such as regular aerobic exercise, are more difficult, but knowing you're buying yourself extra years makes the effort worthwhile. I'm giving this book as a Christmas gift to my future in-laws.

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A REAl eye opener, April 2, 2000

By	Richard Danchik (Florida) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: RealAge: Are You as Young as You Can Be? (Hardcover)

It was this book that opened my eyes on how well I was or wasn't taking care of myself. I was motivated after the first chapter to do things like taking aspirin, limit cell phone calls, taking vitamins, watching diet, etc. I have reduced my realage from my chronological age by 15 years now. If a book can influence people to take care of themselves based on medical science, why not pick up a copy? It's an investment in your life!