News & Views

100th Trip around the sun

W. Gifford-Jones MD & Diana Gifford-Jones

April 20, 2023

BY W. GIFFORD- JONES MD & DIANA GIFFORD-JONES

People often ask me, “What’s my secret to a long and healthy life?” This week, I start my 100^th trip around the sun. So I must acknowledge that Lady Luck has been on my side. But it’s not just good luck, or good genes.

As a medical doctor, I learned early that the best way to stay healthy is to avoid getting sick. Doctors can occasionally work miracles, but these are rare, and you should not count on them as a strategy for a long and healthy life.

Your physical body is your only vehicle on this journey of life. It’s been said, “If you don’t take care of your body, where are you going to live?”

So take this to heart. Rule #1 for good health and longevity is to follow a sound lifestyle starting early in life. And Rule #2 is, never forget rule #1.

Even so, problems can creep up.

Over many years now, I’ve told readers to be wary of pharmaceutical drugs. When I suffered a heart attack at 74 years of age, I chose a high dose vitamin C regimen to combat build up of plaque in coronary arteries. Twenty-five years later, my ticker and cardiovascular system are still going.

Doctors advised me to take statins. They said I wouldn’t live 5 years without them.

I prefer to focus on the fundamentals, not to treat the symptoms. So here is a sample of the common-sense ingredients for good health:

Get regular exercise including aerobic and strength training to maintain physical and mental health.
Eat a balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. Avoid processed foods, sugar, salt, and excess alcohol.
Manage stress using techniques that ease your mind, whether it is meditation and mindfulness, a workout, or a favourite comedy show.
Sleep well, enabling the body and mind to rest and recharge.
Schedule regular medical check-ups, especially to get access to screening tests that help identify and treat heath issues early on.

I have expressed frustration at times when people fail to do these simple things to protect their health, but I have also acknowledged that changing behaviours can be difficult.

So, I have argued that people should build simple and regular habits that promote good health. One of them is stepping on the bathroom scale everyday. It never lies.

On matters of another scale, it confounds me greatly that humankind can be so cruel and misguided. War, pollution, and poverty are among the features of our social landscape that will condemn the chances of many people to reach a healthy old age, but I don’t know how to stop the madness.

In light of it all, there’s little chance of a healthy, long life if you are not happy. Enjoyable social connections with family and friends are undervalued among the determinants of health. The effects of laughter on physical and mental health haven’t been studied enough, but a life of laughter is good practice for old age, when for all its benefits, you also need coping mechanisms – and there is none better than a good laugh.

As I journey for my 100^th trip around the sun, I would like to thank all my readers for your birthday greetings and especially for the feedback regarding how this column has occasionally been helpful to you. I always aim to write in a way that is both informative and thought provoking. And I am not done yet!

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Written By W. Gifford-Jones MD & Diana Gifford-Jones

Dr. W. Gifford-Jones, MD is a graduate of the University of Toronto and the Harvard Medical School. He trained in general surgery at Strong Memorial Hospital, University of Rochester, Montreal General Hospital, McGill University and in Gynecology at Harvard. His storied medical career began as a general practitioner, ship’s surgeon, and hotel doctor. For more than 40 years, he specialized in gynecology, devoting his practice to the formative issues of women’s health. In 1975, he launched his weekly medical column that has been published by national and local Canadian and U.S. newspapers. Today, the readership remains over seven million. His advice contains a solid dose of common sense and he never sits on the fence with controversial issues. He is the author of nine books including, “The Healthy Barmaid”, his autobiography “You’re Going To Do What?”, “What I Learned as a Medical Journalist”, and “90+ How I Got There!” Many years ago, he was successful in a fight to legalize heroin to help ease the pain of terminal cancer patients. His foundation at that time donated $500,000 to establish the Gifford-Jones Professorship in Pain Control and Palliative Care at the University of Toronto Medical School. At 93 years of age he rappelled from the top of Toronto’s City Hall (30 stories) to raise funds for children with a life-threatening disease through the Make-a-Wish Foundation. Diana Gifford-Jones, the daughter of W. Gifford-Jones, MD, Diana has extensive global experience in health and healthcare policy. Diana is Special Advisor with The Aga Khan University, which operates 2 quaternary care hospitals and numerous secondary hospitals, medical centres, pharmacies, and laboratories in South Asia and Africa. She worked for ten years in the Human Development sectors at the World Bank, including health policy and economics, nutrition, and population health. For over a decade at The Conference Board of Canada, she managed four health-related executive networks, including the Roundtable on Socio-Economic Determinants of Health, the Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Management, the Canadian Centre for Environmental Health, and the Centre for Health System Design and Management. Her master’s degree in public policy at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government included coursework at Harvard Medical School. She is also a graduate of Wellesley College. She has extensive experience with Canadian universities, including at Carleton University, where she was the Executive Director of the Global Academy. She lived and worked in Japan for four years and speaks Japanese fluently. Diana has the designation as a certified Chartered Director from The Directors College, a joint venture of The Conference Board of Canada and McMaster University. She has recently published a book on the natural health philosophy of W. Gifford-Jones, called No Nonsense Health – Naturally!

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