Vaccinations aren't just for kids. Older adults should update their inoculations, including a tetanus booster every 10 years and an annual flu shot, and start new ones, like the pneumonia vaccine, that are particularly important after age 60.

Dr. Rosanne Leipzig, vice chair of the department of geriatrics at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, also recommends Zostavax, a vaccine that studies have shown reduces the risk of shingles — a painful condition caused by the reactivation of the varicella zoster virus, the same one that causes chicken pox — by half in older adults. Apart from regular vaccinations, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force suggests routine bone-density screenings for osteoporosis for women over 65. Leipzig says older patients should also be screened for balance problems and discuss fall prevention with their doctor. "More than a third of older adults fall each year," she says, which leads to serious injury and disability. Indeed, one-quarter of older Americans who suffer a hip fracture from a fall — which research suggests may often be caused by poor balance resulting from an inner-ear disorder — die within six months of the injury.

Diet and Nutrition

A lifetime of healthy eating pays off with overall well-being in late adulthood. But beyond a balanced and varied diet of whole grains, lean proteins and fruits and vegetables, vitamin supplementation becomes increasingly important in older age as the body's ability to absorb vital nutrients from food diminishes. That's particularly true with vitamin B12, says Leipzig, which is found in beef, poultry, fish, eggs and dairy products. For older adults, "B12 is something that you absorb better in a pill form," Leipzig says. She also strongly recommends calcium and vitamin D supplements. In the U.S., "there is basically an epidemic at this point of vitamin D deficiency," she says. Meanwhile, a growing body of evidence highlights the benefits of getting enough: vitamin D helps prevent rickets in children and severe bone loss in adults and may reduce the risk of multiple sclerosis, diabetes, cancer, heart disease and flu.

"Exercise, exercise, exercise. It's the only wonder drug we have," Leipzig says. Adults who are physically active not only have a lower risk of disease, depression and chronic pain from conditions like arthritis and back pain but are also less vulnerable to dementia than their inactive peers. The government's exercise recommendations for older adults are identical to those for younger ones. Leipzig underscores a point made by other prevention specialists. "It has to be reasonable," she says. "Walking 30 minutes a day, parking farther away at the supermarket — whatever it takes."

The risk factors for disease and disability are pretty well known by now, but what about the factors that may stave off age-related decline — particularly of the mind? A recent study of 2,500 adults ages 70 to 79 published in the journal Neurology found that those who were able to preserve mental acuity had a few things in common: they exercised at least once a week, did not smoke, had a minimum of a high school education and a ninth-grade literacy level and were socially active. That last point is crucial, according to experts on aging, who say social connection — with friends or family or within the community — helps keep a mind healthy. Likewise, isolation can be a mark of decline, Leipzig says. "One of the signs that something may be happening is people start to be isolated, socialize less, want to go out less. That may be [due to] a mood disorder or an awareness that they can't keep up."