Headaches, numb hands and dizziness are the three main symptoms of a bum neck. Keep it strong by alternately pushing your head forward and then back against your cupped palm for a count of 10 several times a day. Keep your neck supple by gently moving it forward, backward and sideways.

Men are more likely to indulge in self-destructive practices, such as heavy alcohol consumption, smoking, drug use, irresponsible sexual behavior and fast driving. Job stress, while certainly not uniquely male, is also a large contributor to earlier mortality.

The principal risk of the woman alone in late life is financial. Educate yourself about your money situation, and be sure to participate in budgeting and planning. It's also important to stay social and stay needed. Those who can sustain a support system do well; those who can't fall by the wayside.

Many of us go months and even years on four to five hours of sleep a night, but the deficit is cumulative and costs us in decreased performance. If you have problems sleeping, a warm bath two hours before the desired sleep time can often do the trick. Other tips: Exercise, avoid stimulants and worry early, not late.

Any wish list of things to do during retirement includes travel at the very top. The opportunities that travel offers -- adventure, culture, novelty, revisiting, and education -- have broad appeal to all ages, but retirement offers the crucial advantage of time availability. On whatever level you can achieve it, travel helps life attain a higher meaning.

Inevitably, aging does bring losses, and it is possible to fall victim to helplessness and hopelessness. But when hope perishes, all is lost. So learn to confront life's losses, laugh at them, grow from them, and thus turn them into life's gains.

Your participation is important in your health. Your doctor is not the boss; you are partners in maintaining your well-being. Your ability to communicate with your doctor is also essential. Ask questions and be an active patient.

Sex is very close to the essence of life. Some biologists even claim that it is all there is to life. Yet no one is more repressed than older people. The truth is that older people can. Older people do. Older people are sexier than younger people perceive them to be and are sexier than they perceive themselves to be.

For most of us, work provides not just money, but a sense of identity. A regular paycheck can provide continued evidence of our value and meaning. Yet retirement also provides the opportunity to rethink your job. Almost infinite choices exist, so do something you love.

One in every three people over the age of 75 suffers from at least one major fall each year, and falling can be deadly. Those in midlife should include balance exercises in their repertoire of fitness workouts. Stand on one leg for half a minute, then the other -- four or five minutes a day.