Bill Turnbull Holding Back the Years

Today, there are more people over the age of 60 than under 16.

You're 83.

100 years on this Earth.

You've got some amazing volunteers here, 80s and 90s.

But what does growing older mean for you?

Difficult and sometimes more than other times.

I don't think you should be nervous about getting old.

-Yeah.

-It's a wonderful state.

Our team is getting to the bottom of the key ageing concerns

you've told us about.

Deciding when to retire.

Being more sociable.

Keeping healthy.

Making your voice heard.

Or the cost of happiness.

And even if you haven't reached your own golden years,

it's never too early to start planning.

So whether you're an old dog or a young pup,

get ready to learn some new tricks as we lift the lid

on Holding Back The Years.

You can hardly open the newspapers or watch the telly these days

without seeing some scary health story about growing old.

But to coin a phrase, there's a lot of "fake news" out there.

So in this episode, I want to expose some of the myths

and discover the truth of what's really happening.

And here are the headlines.

There's a revolution taking place in home care for the elderly

that's expanding life expectancy

and saving millions of pounds for the NHS.

It just works.

Exciting progress is being made into why and how our minds are ageing

that could help us cure diseases such as Alzheimer's.

What we've found is that the people whose white matter is healthier,

more intact, tend to have better thinking skills.

And in technology news, well,

there are breakthroughs happening that are out of this world.

But first, let me explain my own reason

for being interested in this area.

Well, as a journalist for almost 40 years myself,

I can't help wondering if we in my profession haven't contributed

to all this doom and gloom about getting older,

so I thought it might be time to balance things up a bit.

I've also got a bit of a personal reason.

I turned 60 myself last year

and it led me to think a bit more about staying in shape,

looking after myself and the state of my health

and what the process of ageing holds in store for me,

so this is a perfect journey for me to be going on.

And the place I've come to do my roving reporting

about health in old age is Edinburgh.

It's a city that has a special meaning for me, now that I'm older,

because this is the place I think of

when I remember the full bloom of my youth.

I came here to study for my degree back in the '70s.

In those days, I didn't even think about getting old

and like many of us, I'm sure, I may have overindulged just a bit

in the many bars and clubs of the city.

# And the ring from off her finger

# She instantly drew... #

But this is also where I did my first journalism

writing for the student newspaper

and my passion for separating fact from fiction was born.

I've never looked back since, reporting all around the world

and from behind a variety of desks with various colleagues.

-..and Bill Turnbull.

-Hello and welcome to Breakfast...

..with Kate Silverton... ..Susanna Reid...

..Louise Minchin... ..Naga Munchetty and Bill Turnbull.

Today, though, I'm out on location to bring you the good news

about holding back the years.

First I'm dropping in on some old friends

to compare notes on how we've all aged.

I haven't seen Dermott and Laurie in nearly 40 years,

so I'm curious to catch up.

Fingers crossed they won't look too much younger than me.

-Oh, my goodness.

-Am I late?

-You're all grown-up.

-How are you? Lovely to see you.

-You too.

You look great, yeah.

-Hi, Bill, good to see you.

-All right?

Oh, my goodness.

-How long has it been since we saw each other?

-38 years.

-38 years.

-38 years.

-You look terrific.

-You've still got your hair.

-Well...

He was just saying that you've got more hair than him.

-You've got more!

-A lot to catch up on. Shall we go get a cup of coffee?

-Yes.

-Yes.

-Come on, then.

Well, they seemed to have aged pretty well

since the last time I saw them.

Just to be sure, though, Laurie has brought along a few reminders.

I've got a couple of photographs

-which might bring back some old memories.

-OK.

-A day out at North Berwick.

-OK.

So...

So that's...

-That's the baby you have.

-That's the baby that is now grown-up.

-And I'm smoking a cigarette about 12 inches from its head.

-Yep.

We didn't really think about that either, did we, in those days?

-Not at all.

-Never mind getting old.

-This one is even more perfect.

-BILL CHORTLES

Ah, that's brilliant.

-Fantastic. And the dark glasses.

-And the dark glasses.

-Yeah, very cool.

OK, enough chit-chat - time for my first killer question.

Physically, do you feel as if you're in your early 60s?

-Yes.

-THEY CHUCKLE

-Really?

-Oh, gosh, yes.

-You look great, though.

-I feel...

Yeah, well, I'm a bit arthritic-y and I've had the replacement hip,

so I think you are a lot slower and I think I notice too

when I'm looking after the grandchildren,

it really takes it out of you in a way you never thought of

when it was your own children 30-odd years ago

and you are aware that you're slowing down.

Getting older, is it mostly mind, body or spirit?

When you're buying a car, it's not the year of the car,

it's the mileage and a lot of it is how you look after yourself.

Look after the body.

I think if you look after yourself better and keep active

and keep your mind turning over,

try and do the crosswords even if they seem more difficult -

they've changed the setters.

The print's got so much smaller, hasn't it?

Oh, glasses, you do need good glasses.

Well, I must say, we all seem pretty healthy

and in many ways, that shouldn't be a massive surprise.

Our baby boomer generation was after all the first to have

the lifelong benefits of a free

and comprehensive health care system thanks to the NHS.

That's improved and extended our lives beyond anything our parents

or grandparents might have experienced

and yet, it's not all good news,

because we're also the first generation to have spent much

of our working lives sitting at office desks

while eating a diet of fast food in our spare time,

trying to cope with the stresses of the modern world,

so not the best recipe for good health in old age.

-So I've got a plan.

-OK.

-OK.

I'm going to go away and find out the best way to approach

-the years ahead.

-Right, good.

Possibly even discover the secret to eternal youth

and then I'll come back and tell you all about it.

-That would be just lovely.

-Yeah, sounds good.

OK, let's get this show on the road.

And I want to start, as we journalists often do,

with a bit of an exclusive.

I'm about to show you a place that is unique.

The Centre for Cognitive Ageing at Edinburgh University

studies the minds of old people, quite literally,

all in an effort to understand what causes good ageing

and bad ageing in the human brain.

I'm meeting some octogenarians who've come in

to get their fundamental cognitive skills tested today.

Or to put that in everyday language,

seeing just how well their minds are working.

First up, Margaret, who's using a piece of equipment

that's checking her reaction skills.

-Excellent.

-You're scared to blink.

You try very hard, don't you, Margaret?

-You do take it very seriously.

-I do.

I try to second-guess. You're thinking, "Two must be... Oh! Four!"

Cos you want to do as well as you possibly can.

-How's she doing?

-Splendid. That's a very good time.

-Is it?

-Yeah.

Patrick is completing a test on his spatial awareness,

something we use every day to get ourselves around.

-OK, that's your time up, so stop there.

-Nearly, nearly.

-That's fiendishly difficult.

-Aye.

-A particularly difficult one.

-Very difficult.

That last one caused a wee bit of a problem.

I knew it would, but I think I did not too bad.

And George is having what we all worry about losing in later life,

memory, put through the mangle.

Great.

It's confusing, George, isn't it?

Terrible.

If you can't lock on

-with the image, you lose it.

-Yeah.

To you or me, this may look like a few pensioners doing some puzzles,

but it's actually producing some interesting scientific insights

about how the older mind works.

-Hi, Ian.

-Mr Turnbull.

To explain more about this research and what it could mean for us,

I'm meeting Professor Ian Deary.

What we're trying to find out is

why is it that some people get to a particular age,

the same as others, but they're actually different -

they're healthier, or they can think better.

So is ageing more a thing of the mind than the body?

Does it work like that?

For me and my team, we don't think of them as separate.

The brain is another organ of the body and it does stuff,

it does thinking stuff and other stuff as well

and think about it - the brain has a blood supply,

it's got cells and tissues that age like other aspects of the body

and, of course, that's reflected in our results.

We're finding that people who have healthier bodies

tend - it's not a strong association -

but tend also to have healthier thinking skills,

so we don't separate them.

Perhaps the most important piece of research they do here

is an experiment that uses a unique set of senior citizens

to analyse the effect of ageing on the human mind

and its origins are fascinating.

In 1947, something happened in Scotland

that was quite extraordinary.

A national intelligence test was carried out

on all 11-year-old children

and the results survive to this day.

Those children are now in their 80s

and they've been tracked down and recruited

to be part of something called the Lothian Birth Cohort.

By contrasting how their brains work today

compared to when they were kids,

the professor and his team have discovered some interesting things

about how our minds age and perhaps what can be done to preserve them.

We've looked at everything from genetic factors to health

and medical factors, biochemical factors and social ones as well

and in each of those different areas,

we have found things that are interesting

with respect to whether people are ageing well or less well

compared to their colleagues, so for example,

we've found one or two little genetic effects.

Some of the genes that appear to affect

whether or not one gets dementia

also affect normal cognitive ageing.

We've also found that the people who don't smoke

are ageing in thinking skills slightly better than others,

as are the people who are fitter

and those people who also take more exercise.

We also found some interesting more social things.

For example, people with more education,

people in more professional jobs,

and people who can speak more than one language

have small advantages in this cognitive ageing.

Their thinking skills are slightly better

than we'd otherwise expect in older age.

So don't smoke, get some exercise and even learning a language

seem to be key pieces of advice.

The reason is because all these things can affect the way

the brain connects together, as the professor is showing me now.

This is an anonymised brain from the Lothian Birth Cohort of 1936

and what this shows are the brain's connections.

Most people have heard of the grey matter of the brain

and broadly speaking that's on the outside of the brain,

the thinking stuff, but the thinking stuff works because it's connected

with what's called the white matter,

which lies underneath and what we've found

is that the people whose white matter is healthier, more intact,

tend to have better thinking skills than other people.

What's so exciting about a place like this

is that the research they're doing here

could one day help lead to cures

for the illnesses that often accompany old age,

like Alzheimer's.

But I get the feeling there's a lot more to learn

from the golden oldie guinea pigs,

so I've gathered them together

to conduct my own somewhat less scientific survey.

Well, may I say you're all looking marvellous.

I hope I look as good as you when I get to be the age of 80,

if I actually get that far.

First of all, are you all happy to be at the age that you are?

-ALL:

-Yes.

-80's a good year? ALL:

-Yeah.

When you're 80, in your head, you're never more than 50.

You're not frightened of what other people might think about you.

You're free, you're more independent,

you can say and do what you like.

-I think you think, "I am who I am."

-Yes.

Finally, perhaps, we've grown-up. But not really.

So you're special people, aren't you?

Because you're part of the Lothian Birth Cohort.

-Have you enjoyed the process? ALL:

-Yes.

-Very much so.

What's been the best part of it?

Resitting my 11-plus.

THEY GUFFAW

-And getting more marks for it.

-Yes!

-Getting very good marks.

I found out that I wasn't as stupid

as my big brother always told me I was.

THEY CHUCKLE

I got a free MOT.

At the hospital.

-Health check.

-Health check. Marvellous.

The tests, they worry me at times the ones where they ask me

questions and I forget!

-But I just laugh.

-But you're helping science too,

-isn't that brilliant?

-Yes. And that is the bottom line.

To think that the group I am talking to now were the kids who

took the National Intelligence Test 70 years ago is truly remarkable.

But while their minds and bodies may have changed quite a lot,

inside they are the same people who must have learned

a great deal over the course of their lives.

So what better way to end our conversation than by getting

some top tips?

Now, for younger people,

have you got any tips about how they might age as gracefully as you have?

To be confident and to enjoy the times in which you are living.

The important thing is to enjoy your current experiences.

I think it is important to continue to learn.

I think it is important to be looking around ourselves

at the world

and people of the world obviously and to be learning

and asking yourself questions and re-appraising some of the perhaps

biases that you have taken from your youth and so on and look again.

It's probably helped, though,

taking part in this study, hasn't it?

I have thoroughly enjoyed it, I have found it very, very interesting.

It is quite humbling in a way that we have been able through

-our brains to do good for other people in the future.

-Hear, hear.

But I suppose while I am here, I too should lend my brain to science.

I am having a go at the dreaded memory test. Wish me luck.

-Great, that is brilliant.

-Was it good?

I wouldn't want to try doing that when I'm 80 years old.

I don't think I would do nearly so well.

Still, it is good to know that my brain is doing OK.

This place has brought us the good news that perhaps we

shouldn't worry quite so much about getting older.

It is really lovely to see some of the smiling faces from these

photographs still bright and engaged here 70 years later.

Ageing is such a complicated subject but the work they are doing

here in Edinburgh gives us great hope for the future.

If you only read some papers,

you might think that pensioners all over Britain are lying in

hospital corridors being ignored by a woefully unequipped NHS

and demoralised staff.

Well, it is just not true.

Of course, no-one is saying that things are perfect but there

is also another story to tell.

In particular, how the NHS is transforming the way in which

older people are treated at home.

It seems that Scotland is leading the way again.

The Age Specialist Service Emergency Team or Asset

is a remarkable virtual hospital

that is using the latest in technology

to monitor and treat patients at home all from a central HQ.

Dr Graham Ellis is giving me a quick tour.

This is one of our hubs for the hospital at home teams.

What you'll see is we've got hospital at home practitioners who

are currently working looking after patients

who are out in their own homes.

We have got 67 patients at home today who would otherwise need

a hospital bed.

The hospital at home practitioners are

a group which composes physiotherapy, nursing, occupational

therapy, pharmacy, mental health nurses and ambulance staff.

So, in a sense, a rapid response team.

If a problem crops up they make sure the treatment gets to them quickly.

Absolutely. So most of the time during the day they are out

on the road seeing patients.

When we get a call in for a patient

who is referred into hospital at home,

we made a commitment we will be in the house within an hour,

starting their treatment, starting their assessment just as they

would do at the front door of a hospital.

So this is a virtual hospital ward.

Yes, this is our virtual ward,

but you can think of it as exactly a hospital ward.

You can see that we have got a system that allows us to know

exactly what is happening with each patient,

what their plan is for today, what we have already done

and when they are due to be handed back to the GP.

We still talk about discharge although actually they're

in their own house.

We keep an overview of that on this system

as well as in the hospital notes.

The other advantage of this system is it allows us to get an immediate

overview of one of our smaller wards

and see where our patients are at in their care.

So we manage all of that from our hub here.

Enabling patients to be treated at home instead of at hospital

obviously has the potential to save the NHS millions of pounds a year

in freed up beds.

But the real benefit is that home recuperation might,

in some cases, also help improve recovery rates

and treatment options for elderly patients,

as the nurses here know only too well.

-Hi, Richard.

-Hi.

What is the biggest difference, do you think,

between the treatment that you give to somebody in their home

and somebody who might otherwise be in hospital?

Well, ideally, there shouldn't be any difference at all.

It should be that that is the best option for the patient.

Not everybody needs to go to hospital and not everybody

wants to go to hospital. So it is in the best interest of the patient.

-And the patients appreciate that, do they?

-A lot.

Especially the elderly patients, they do because

a lot of them are actually quite scared going into hospital.

The fact that they are in their own homes,

they feel more safe in their own environment.

So the social benefit from talking to you as well as the medical.

Yes, they are getting someone visiting them,

someone listening to them and someone spending time with them,

rather than just focusing on medical issues only.

So you've got to be good at chat and patter.

Yes, you've got to have good communication skills

and effective listening.

I really want to see this for myself in person

so the Asset team have kindly allowed me

to go out on the road with one of their team of roaming health carers.

Nurse Sandy is certain that when it comes to health care

for the elderly, we are headed in the right direction.

It is a very definite pleasure to serve the community and work

within it for so long and enjoy it.

I think the changes have been really good for the elderly particularly,

to live in their own homes and be supported and not have to go

into long-term care.

Some people used to go into long-term care

-so early and had to stay.

-You mean a care home?

-A nursing home.

-They would be there for a long time.

-Yes.

I think it is what a lot of people worry about, actually, isn't it?

Yes, and people live so much longer now.

We have one or two over 100, 102 now.

It is absolutely lovely to see them still living independently

with sometimes minimal care, minimal assistance.

So what is the difference between what you do now and what the

district nurse would have done?

Years ago in the community it was the district nurses who actually

attended to all the personal care in the community

whereas now it has evolved and we have had joint working services

for some time now and it means we can amalgamate much better.

This is just the latest chapter in how the National Health Service

has redesigned health care for older people in Britain.

Before it was established,

geriatrics didn't even exist as a specialism.

Today, it is one of the largest departments in the NHS.

But with an ageing population putting more and more

pressure on its resources, home treatment has become essential.

And for Sandy, it is working.

So the system works, do you think?

I think the system works extremely well.

I think to live in the community in your own home is

very admirable and it is extremely helpful.

It frees up hospital beds.

-Because there is an awful lot of pressure on those.

-Oh, there is.

It allows people to be in their own home environment with their

own family and neighbours round about them.

But, of course, the only person who can really

tell me if the system works is the patient.

And that is where we are off to now.

-Sandy, where are we going today?

-We are going to visit Mr Alan Snowden.

Alan has been widowed for ten years.

He manages to live himself now but only with the support of

the care staff from the social work department in Lanark.

He has a COPD which is a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

which makes him very short of breath.

And you are going to check up that he's OK medically.

I keep an eye on Alan too

because I come in and I'll do some checks on his health

and make sure his blood pressure and his vital signs are fine

and go over his anticipated care plan so we know what his wishes are.

I do hope Alan doesn't mind Sandy bringing along a friend today.

-Hello, Alan, how are you?

-Fine, thank you, and you?

I am very well indeed, nice to see you again.

She's brought an extra guest. Hi, Alan, nice to meet you.

-How are you?

-Fine, thank you, and you?

-Very well, thank you.

You are a long way from home.

Yes, but I am home away from home because I'm with Sandy today.

-So this is a regular checkup you get, is it?

-Yes.

Check his blood pressure.

I hope she has warmed her stethoscope

because it is cold outside.

They come in and check on me regularly which is

a great benefit.

Thank you very much. That's grand.

It is very reassuring too.

Because you know if anything goes wrong, you can get help quickly.

Yes, I can phone Sandy any time.

-You've been keeping all right? Not too short of breath?

-Yes.

I get short of breath particularly in the morning.

But particularly at this time of year...

with the cold.

-I won't be a moment.

-Fine.

That's very good. It's coming in well.

-Good.

-130/80.

-Doing very well indeed.

-That doesn't mean anything to me, I'm afraid.

-For a 90-year-old you are doing really well.

-Oh, thank you.

It's nice to know with Sandy coming to see you every once in a while,

if there are any problems, which you won't necessarily feel,

-she'll know what is going on.

-Yes.

Not only that, when the carers come in, they help me dress,

but the important thing is that the psychological knowledge

of them coming every morning is great.

If I am not well, if they think that I need medical attention,

they'll phone either Sandy or the doctor and...

both of whom would always respond

and then the carers very often look back in later on

in the day to make sure that the response

has been there and to find out what the result is.

But it is perhaps the peace of mind that the system offers

Alan's family that is most important.

His family are aware that he has support throughout the day

-and with all your activities and daily living.

-Yes.

-The family know that we're here for you.

-Yes, quite.

Because they are a bit further away.

They know that I am being well looked after.

So that is a great feeling, I'll tell you.

How important is it for you to be here in your own home?

I've been a loner all my life.

I wouldn't fit in to a nursing home

or an old folks' home,

or that sort of thing.

But it is so important to me to be here and to be able to do

things the way I want and live life the way I want and I am able.

That is what is so important to me.

Alan is going to be 91 in May and he's been living on his own

for some years now.

But he sees his carers every day and he gets very good medical care

from Sandy and the other nurses.

But the most important thing I think, for me, is that because

he is still at home,

he is engaged in the local community where he has been for some time,

so he can see his friends, he can get down to the shops,

he is still taking part in things.

That must surely be really quite beneficial.

I hope I am delivering on my promise to bring you some of the good news

when it comes to getting older.

The places I have been to seem far removed from the doom and gloom

you often see portrayed in the media.

None of them though compare in the so-called fake news stakes

with the next type of story I want to touch on -

complementary medicine.

-NEWS REPORT:

-A cure for baldness.

This is the claim of president and founder of the club, Tony,

who started extensive research into the subject

after losing his own hair.

Here is the secret weapon which puts his theories into practice.

A powerful suction cup many times more effective than massage

and stimulating circulation under the scalp.

Sometimes these days it is really hard to tell which treatments

are good for us and which are just trying to get us to spend,

or should that be waste, our money.

But there is one sort of therapy that does interest me

and as your intrepid reporter, I'm going to check it out.

This is Glasgow's Hindu Cultural Centre where the motto is

"keep calm and do yoga."

A piece of advice I'm going to follow

with the help of Paul Kaushal.

BOTH: Oohm...

Sea breeze. Stars.

You are sitting on the seaside and there's a very calm sea

and that calmness bring to you...

mind and your body as well.

And eventually your body comes calm.

How does yoga help people and meditation specifically?

Yoga helps because you control your thoughts.

Thoughts are very important in life.

-You have to cut yourself off the rest of the world.

-OK.

Because otherwise your attention is here, there,

everywhere - no relaxation.

So all calm within, and you concentrate either inbetween your...

both eyebrows or on your breath you take, up and down, OK?

And recite "ohm."

BOTH: Ohm.

OK, so it is all a bit alternative,

but there is some emerging science to back up the potential benefits

of yoga when it comes to slowing down the ageing process.

It's all to do with how the genes and cells react to the breathing,

the poses and the general effects brought on by meditation.

Of course, some kinds of yoga are a bit more intense than others,

but this version is suiting me down to the ground.

You have to go beyond it.

That's called meditation where you relax your body.

It calms you down.

Calms you down because you control your thoughts.

When you say "hmmm," you will see eventually your blood vibrates up.

If there's any small blockage, that clears it.

All this process does not take place in one day, in a short time.

It is natural process and develops,

like a flower eventually unfolds.

And it develops over a period.

One thing is quite important, though - the way you're sitting -

cos I can't really sit like that very comfortably,

and-and a lot of people couldn't get close to it, so how should you sit?

-Can you sit on a chair?

-Sit on a chair.

You can sit in any position where you feel relaxed, OK?

The advantage of this posture is, it's straight up,

it's very effective, OK? Fresh air goes in, and goes in all parts.

If you're stooped, it will be a little bit blocked.

As the thoughts, it relaxes your body and again,

it's the thoughts makes you fresh.

OK?

Once you're relaxed and fresh, you're a different person,

but remember, yoga is a way of life, OK?

It's nothing to do with any religion or so on, it's a way of life,

it's a part of life, OK?

And it's these mental benefits of yoga

that are perhaps the most intriguing.

Depression and anxiety in old age

are among the modern blights of our society.

If yoga can help heal the mind, then it must be a good thing, surely?

And if you think it's all about sitting down and chanting,

well, think again.

It can also get quite physical.

So next, I'm joining a class of yogic high flyers.

Breathe in. Then you go to the side. Three, four...

Four.

Well, um...that was fun

but it was surprisingly strenuous, wasn't it?

Do...? How often do you all come and do this?

Once a week in here, but in the house we try to do yoga every day.

Every day? Well, you all must be in amazing shape.

-Mentally, you feel a lot alert.

-What do you get out of it?

I feel relaxed. Keep me fit.

I had a back problem, and when I started yoga -

since I started doing the yoga - my back is better than before.

-And so I cut down on medication.

-You cut down on your medication?

-Yes.

A little encouragement if given to the body or the mind will fortify.

Hm. Having done it for some time, has it affected your life overall?

Yes.

I'm a very angry person, very angry,

and then I get very agitated about little things,

and my breathing had gone bad.

I have heart problems, I've had stents in my...and I think it

has given me long...better life now.

I can do things, I can walk, I can play,

I can talk and I can fight with people. I can do that.

-But are you still angry?

-No, I'm not angry.

I'm very happy because my breathing has made me...

I don't like physical, I can do physical also.

I'm 78 now but my breathing has improved my heart condition.

Breathe out. Both hands in front. Same exercise again.

Well, after all that hard work relaxing,

I think cooling down is on the cards.

Or in the case of this lot, cooling down while playing cards.

So, ladies, what are you up to here?

-A game.

-Playing cards.

Playing cards. Who's winning?

ALl TALK AT ONCE

You're all winning?

-Who's cheating?

-Nobody's cheating.

So she's a cheat and she's a bad loser?

THEY LAUGH

It keeps our brain active because we need to remember which card

is gone and which is not.

So you're not just playing for fun - it's good brain exercise?

Oh, very, very good for brain.

It's very good for brain. All day, keep ourselves busy.

Don't feel bored, don't feel lonely, don't feel depressed, like,

enjoy ourself, all the time.

-Wonderful.

-Very good.

So, let me get this straight,

-you come in here and you do yoga...

-Yeah.

..and you get nice and calm and meditative

-and then you play cards...

-Yes.

..and you get all excited and angry with each other!

Yeah, who's winning and who's losing!

THEY LAUGH

So you need to calm down again afterwards.

Very good. THEY LAUGH

-You carry on playing, then.

-Thanks.

I think it's fair to say that when it comes to holding back the years

these guys have a winning hand.

It's nearly the end of my good news journey

into the world of health and wellbeing in our older years

but I've got just enough time to bring you one last story.

And as we say on the news, "and, finally,"

there's one type of story the media love when it comes to old people

and their health -

wacky pensioners who are keeping fit in unusual ways.

Whether that's skydiving grannies,

roller-skating seniors

or pensioners playing in the park.

But the truth is that the vast majority are never going to do

any of these things, they're just too extreme or embarrassing.

However, there is a quieter, gentler

and much more private way of staying fit.

And it's becoming very popular.

According to some recent studies,

the age group that uses the gym most regularly are the over-70s,

but what do they get out of it

and what type of exercise can you do there?

I'm popping along to a centre which offers different ways

for seniors to keep fit...

..whether it's rowing, pumping weights or pounding the treadmill.

MUSIC: Moving On Up by M People

Here to explain how it can help hold back the years

is personal trainer Craig.

What are the benefits, then, of coming to the gym for older people?

It's huge. As you get older, the body naturally starts to degenerate,

so by doing a minimal twice a week, you can reverse that completely.

It increases the bone density and increases the muscle mass as well.

And these guys here, they're your top athletes.

These guys are the elite of the elite. Yes, they are!

-They are.

-Olympians.

-They're regulars.

-They're the Olympians.

Oh, future, future Olympians.

The first athlete of a certain age is Sheila, she's 82.

What brought you to the gym?

Initially a social activity,

it was the swim, er...

-the aqua class with friends.

-Uh-huh.

-How often do you come here, then?

-Four times a week, usually.

That's a lot.

Yes, but it structures the day.

And you feel more energised.

Definitely feel more energised cos if you sit about

then you just kind of nod off or whatever but...

it gives you the get-up-and-go.

And the science says that even light exercise is good for you.

It's estimated that just 15 minutes a day can extend your life.

So the message is, you don't have to go skydiving to stay fit.

It can be a bit nerve-racking, though, can't it,

for somebody coming in who is older, who doesn't know what to expect?

Absolutely. I think it can be nerve-racking for any age group.

We try to make it as welcoming as possible.

One of the first things that you do is you receive a health check

which just allows to see that you are fit and able to do the exercise

and it may also flag up some things

that you might not have been aware of.

We offer age specific classes here as well which, again,

is really good for sort of introducing the social element.

For Anne, it's something everyone should have a go at.

Well, Anne, I think you're the top gun of this particular class.

Is it something you would recommend for other older people?

Anybody, yeah. No matter whether it's swimming, the gym, whatever.

As long as you're moving and once you're moving, oh, it's marvellous.

And, finally, Sandra is using exercise

to recover from a bout of illness.

How many miles have you got so far on the clock?

Well, I'm not counting.

What brought you to the gym?

First of all, it stops me becoming a slob.

I need the discipline of a gym, I wouldn't exercise on my own.

It kind of repairs the wear and tear.

And also, you know, you make new friends, get out, things like that.

You said it repairs wear and tear, how's that?

-Well, I have some wear and tear at the top of my spine.

-Uh-huh.

So if I do exercise and various ones which you get guidance on,

it means you don't do any further damage,

in fact you might improve things.

Of course not everyone is able to use the gym,

almost half of all pensioners report having mobility issues.

And that's where the role of technology comes in.

We've always invented stuff to help us in later life,

from the hip replacement...

X-ray, please.

..to the hearing aid...

..the stairlift,

to the good old Zimmer frame.

But here's the breaking news,

we live in a time of unparalleled invention

that's revolutionising how the elderly can stay mobile.

But what's on offer to the average person in the here and now

and what does it cost?

I've come to one of the largest mobility superstores

here in Scotland and first,

I'm checking out the hottest wheels in the warehouse.

Mobility scooters, then, are the most expensive things you sell?

Yes, I would say pretty much that's true.

Something like this would be a fairly typical scooter

that somebody would use.

Ideal for the pavements, easy-to-use,

let somebody get around.

Entry-level, is that what you'd call it?

-Entry-level, definitely.

-It's got a mahogany trim.

Mahogany trim, of course, only the finest.

How much is this one, then?

You're going to be somewhere between roughly £1,000-£2,000,

just depending on specifications.

-Over here, though, we have the top-of-the-range.

-Yeah.

You're looking much more at the Rolls-Royce type scooter,

much bigger, much fancier and, of course,

-you can use this on the road as well.

-OK.

-Quite a lot of stuff going on here, though, isn't there?

-There is.

There's all these controls here, massive dashboard.

It's like an aircraft, yeah.

You've got indicators, you've also got a speed control,

one for the road, one for the pavement.

You've also got full suspension,

so typically someone who's perhaps given up their car

might buy something like this.

What's the top speed on this one?

You're looking at about 8mph on the road

and you're limited to 4mph on the pavement.

So, 0-8 in how many seconds?

It depends how fast you accelerate.

How much is this going to cost you?

Erm, anywhere, depending on a size of scooter,

you're going to be anywhere between £3,000-£5,000,

-depending on size and type.

-It has got a lot of bounce on it.

It is. Very, very comfortable.

This is what they would call a good, comfortable ride.

Yes, it is. Very...

Big suspension on it, makes it really comfortable to use, yeah.

And we Brits really do love our mobility scooters.

In fact, we're the mobility scooter capital of Europe

with more than 250,000 of them currently on the roads.

Keep going, keep going.

It can sometimes cause some, well, problems.

OK, where are you going now, mate?

-Walter.

-Yeah?

-Come back here, mate.

But it's not just high-end products on offer in places like this,

there's everything to make life just a little easier

for the elderly in here,

including the most basic of activities, like standing up.

If you look at something like this, you've got a simple control

which you can use and, again, if I push this button here,

the foot will elevate.

This can often help the swelling of the ankles or swollen feet.

And the chair also rises up to help you stand up, does it?

That's right, it'll basically help you stand up.

If you're fit and able in the morning,

by afternoon time you might be getting a bit tired,

you can use this chair. If you're struggling to get to the bathroom,

struggling to get to the kitchen, for example,

it makes a big difference to the elderly people.

Of course we're only scratching the surface here

of what's available worldwide

when it comes to helping those with mobility reach new heights.

From the highly practical to the simply mind-boggling.

For Keith, though, it's about providing a vital service right now.

We see customers who, you know,

they're at not a great time in their life,

they've had possibly a stroke,

they've had a severe disability of some sort

so they're not in a great place and they're really looking for somewhere

to come to give them some advice, to give them some help

and hopefully we can then provide some sort of, you know,

not a solution exactly but an aid or a device that will help them.

My time in Scotland is nearly up.

I set out to show you some of the good news about health care

for us older Brits

and also to expose some of the myths out there along the way.

So, as I've ended many a broadcast, what's the summary?

Well, things aren't as bad as the media would sometimes

have us believe.

There are wonderful people and places out there

dedicated to helping us all have a healthy older age.

And the future looks bright in terms of the role that medical research,

science and technology will play in helping us hold back the years.

Most of all, though, it's never been easier to take control

of your own wellbeing and there are lots of inspirational characters

willing to show us the way.

Good news that I'm passing on to my old friends Dermott and Laurie.

I think the most important thing, though,

-I've discovered is psychologically.

-Yes.

The attitude that you have to it.

If you think positively, stay engaged, make friends,

keep friends, see friends, get involved in projects,

-if you can do that and live in the moment...

-Yes, yes.

..that, for me, is the single most important thing

-cos that's the energy that keeps you going.

-Yes.

-Yep.

-Right.

-Cool.

-Good to know.

-Sorted.