Aging Gracefully with Andrew Weil, M.D.

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We're all getting older, despite what you might have heard or read. Aging is not reversible. Even so, our cultural biases focus on being and looking young. Why and how does aging happen? Why do we spend so much time wishing or just pretending it doesn't? What can be done about it? With engaging candor and practical common sense, Dr. Andrew Weil shares stories of his mother, who died at age 93; centenarians from Okinawa and Sardinia; and myths and legends. He explores common Western beliefs and attitudes about aging and urges listeners to develop healthier perspectives. His belief is that although aging is an irreversible process, there are myriad things we can do to keep our minds and bodies in good working order through all phases of life. Dr. Weil encourages us to age gracefully and consider accepting the process instead of fighting it. "Aging can bring frailty and suffering, but it can also bring depth and richness of experience, complexity of being, serenity, wisdom, and its own kind of power and grace." (hosted by Michael Toms)

Bio

Andrew Weil, M.D. is a leader and pioneer in the field of integrative medicine. He’s a graduate of Harvard Medical School and the Founder and Director of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine (AzCIM) at the College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, where he is also a Clinical Professor of Medicine, Professor of Public Health, and the Lovell-Jones Professor of Integrative Rheumatology. Dr. Weil received both his medical degree and his undergraduate AB degree in biology (botany) from Harvard University. He writes Self Healing, a monthly newsletter, and is the author of many books.

He’s the author of:

• The Natural Mind (Houghton Mifflin 1973)
• Chocolate to Morphine: Understanding Mind-Active Drugs (with Winifred Rosen) Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; First Edition edition 1983)
• Spontaneous Healing : How to Discover and Embrace Your Body's Natural Ability to Maintain and Heal Itself (Ballantine Books 2000)
• 8 Weeks to Optimum Health: A Proven Program for Taking Full Advantage of Your Body's Natural Healing Power (Knopf 2006)
• Healthy Aging: A Lifelong Guide to Your Well-Being (Knopf 2005)
• Why Our Health Matters: A Vision of Medicine That Can Transform Our Future (Hudson Street 2009)
• Spontaneous Happiness: A New Path to Emotional Well-Being (Little, Brown and Company, Reprint edition 2013)
• True Food: Seasonal, Sustainable, Simple, Pure (with co-authors, Sam Fox & Michael Stebner) (Little, Brown and Company 2012)

To learn more about the work of Andrew Weil go to www.drweil.com.

Topics Explored in This Dialogue

• How can we live long and well?
• Why the number and quality of social and intellectual connections is important in staying young
• How Turmeric is a natural anti-inflammatory agent
• What kinds of learning might particularly be good at holding off dementia?
• How new cells are made?
• What is that part of ourselves that doesn't change?
• When awareness of aging can be an important factor in spiritual awakening and growth
• Why men and women live equally as long on the island of Sardinia?