Obama Is Fit, Are You?

As we watch Barack Obama take office, we can learn some lessons that will help us all be healthier in 2009.

Obama's personal health choices have drawn praise from Men's Fitness Magazine, which named him one of this year's "25 Fittest Guys in America" for avoiding fatty foods and beginning most days with a vigorous aerobic workout.

Both Barack and Michelle Obama get points for their devotion to exercise. He does one-arm dumbbell curls, shoulder and leg presses and runs on the treadmill. She exercises for 90 minutes three times a week, favoring the stair-stepper and spin bike. And of course he plays basketball, my favorite sport since I was old enough to walk. I'm still going strong at 65 and hope to continue the rest of my life.

From all outward appearances, the 47-year-old Harvard Law School graduate looks to be in great health, says cardiologist Chip Lavie, medical and cardiac rehabilitation director at Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute in New Orleans. "As long as he doesn't take up smoking again," says Lavie, referring to a habit Obama reportedly kicked on the campaign trail last year, but may be struggling with still. So what's the health outlook of other guys his age?

Here's a snapshot, compiled by USA Today writer Mary Brophy Marcus, of how the average middle-aged man stacks up:

Hair
Much less than at 20. One out of 3 guys over 45 has male pattern baldness, says Washington, D.C., cosmetic dermatologist Hema Sundaram. Ironically, age-related hormone changes speed up nose hair growth.

Sleep
One out of 25 middle-age men suffers from sleep apnea, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Hispanics and African-Americans are more at risk for the disorder, typified by pauses in breathing during sleep and grogginess in the day.

Eyes
Don't worry, blinking and squinting aren't likely to be age-related tics. It's a good bet you're ready for reading glasses and some eye drops, because dry eyes can plague after 40. Get a glaucoma check now, because it's more common as men near 50, says Duke Eye Center ophthalmologist Sanjay Asrani.

Ears
Wife complaining that you're cranking the Springsteen too loud? You probably are. A man's hearing wanes faster than a woman's after 40. Preserve it: wear earplugs when lawn-mowing and hunting. And don't blast the iPod, says Duke hearing expert David Kaylie.

Teeth
It's unlikely your grandkids will one day ogle your dentures in a water glass on the night table. The introduction of fluoride toothpaste in 1961 is one reason why this generation's pearly whites will be longer-lasting. But don't forego twice-yearly cleanings, especially now that cracks and chips are more apt to occur, says dentist Matthew Messina of the American Dental Association.

Gut, and thus the heart
Most middle-age men are overweight, says Lavie at the Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute. "Many are obese," he says, and a quarter to a third have metabolic syndrome - a combo of risk factors including high blood sugar, high blood pressure, poor cholesterol stats and too much belly fat.

Heart attack risk
For a non-smoker: 3 percent-5 percent
For smokers: Over 10 percent
The odds rise to 10 percent and 20 percent after age 50, Lavie says.

Sexual health
Erection problems don't really kick in until after age 50, says Arnold Melman, chairman of urology at Montefiore Medical Center in New York. "That's when aging and damage from diabetes and hypertension can catch up with men by altering the blood vessels and smooth muscles in the penis," he says. Viagra has helped virility.

Brain
Multi-tasking and quick recall of last night's game score may be slipping, but a man in his late 40s trumps his 20-something colleagues in complex reasoning and decision-making tasks. "The frontal lobe of his brain, where those things happen, is at its peak," says UCLA aging expert Gary Small. At this age, the capacity for empathy is higher too.

None of the negative changes associated with aging are inevitable. While you're watching President Obama in 2009, ask yourself what you can do to look and feel as good as he does. When you tell yourself you don't have time to eat well or exercise regularly, ask yourself if you are as busy as Barack. Let's make this year the best ever for our own health, the health of our country, and the health of the world.

Come visit me at www.MenAlive.com to find out how to stay physically and emotionally fit in 2009.