Health and wellness resources

Maintaining Health and Wellness for Older Adults

Many of us know we need to be healthier. There is a wealth of information available about what we should be eating and how much we should be exercising. Sometimes it can feel overwhelming. As we age we experience many changes - from physical and mental health changes. Our wellbeing is as important now as at any other stage of life.

The links and resources on this page contain helpful information from reputable sources all around the world on how to look after our physical and mental health.

Remember to always consult your GP or a qualified health practitioner for medical advice.

Nutrition and Healthy Eating

Handy tips on eating well on a budget and accessing affordable healthy food - click here to download pdf (PDF 220KB)

Online Health Checks

Healthy Eating Quiz - provided by the University of Newcastle, Australia
ABC Health Check - an evidence-based guide

Healthy Living Resources

Mental Health Services

HERE - ACON’s digital suicide prevention hub, connecting the LGBTQ+ community, their loved ones, and service providers to care, support, and resources. Please proceed at your own pace. You are not alone, there is support here for you.
13YARN - [Thirteen YARN] is the first national crisis support line for Aboriginal people who are feeling overwhelmed or having difficulty coping. They offer a confidential one-on-one yarning opportunity with a Lifeline-trained Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Crisis Supporter who can provide crisis support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. 13YARN empowers the Aboriginal community with the opportunity to yarn without judgement and provide a culturally safe space to speak about their needs, worries or concerns.
Griefline is a free telephone service support open 8a.m.-8p.m. Monday to Friday. Their goal is "to ensure you feel welcomed, connected, and accepted through your experience of grief and loss. We suspend judgement to recognise and accept your suffering and unique grief experience”.
Lifeline - a national charity providing all Australians experiencing emotional distress with access to 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention services. "We exist so that no person in Australia has to face their darkest moments alone."
RUOK? - RUOK? inspire and empower everyone to meaningfully connect with the people around them and start a conversation with those in their world who may be struggling with life.
Mindspot - If you have stress, anxiety or low mood you can participate in the “MindSpot… The Wellbeing Plus Course” you need to complete an initial assessment either online or over the phone. The course takes 8 weeks, you do lessons and talk at least weekly to a MindSpot Clinic therapist. Visit the website or call 1800 61 44 34 . Results indicate that “95% of people in these courses report it was worth their time and that they would refer a friend, and most made good clinical improvement”.
P4T - P4T is a new ACON program providing peer support and service referrals to adult trans people (binary and non-binary) in NSW. P4T is currently being run as a pilot program, and is staffed by trans people of a range of identities and experiences. There is no cost to access P4T.
Mental health and wellbeing - Inner West Council (nsw.gov.au)

Podcasts

Huberman Lab - Andrew Huberman, Ph.D., is a neuroscientist and tenured Professor in the Department of Neurobiology at the Stanford University School of Medicine. He has made numerous significant contributions to the fields of brain development, brain function and neural plasticity, which is the ability of our nervous system to rewire and learn new behaviors, skills and cognitive functioning. Work from the Huberman Laboratory at Stanford School of Medicine has been published in top journals including Nature, Science, and Cell and has been featured in TIME, BBC, Scientific American, Discover, and other top media outlets. In 2021, Dr. Huberman launched the Huberman Lab Podcast. The podcast is frequently ranked in the Top 25 of all podcasts globally and is often ranked #1 in the categories of Science, Education, and Health & Fitness.

The Ageing Project with Shelley Craft - The Aging Project is proud to present this trail-blazing podcast series that flips the bird to the notion that women in their forties and above should be either slowly fading into the background, or in a constant battle to look younger. We want to show you how we can all choose to age fabulously and without apology, and to own our age with pride - with great health, style and vitality. Hosted by Shelley Craft, The Aging Project podcast features candid, no-holds-barred interviews with twelve of the world’s leading and most inspiring minds in the field of aging well. Join Shelley as she explores topics like genetics, brain health to meditation, menopause to eye health (and lots more!). We want to positively impact your journey into middle-life and beyond. Let's make this the best time of our lives.
The Brain Health Revolution Podcast - Join award-winning neurologists and researchers, Drs. Dean and Ayesha Sherzai, for a fun, innovative and inspirational approach to brain health and all matters concerning the remarkable human mind. This is the century of the brain, a time when our insights into this incredible organ are exploding at an unprecedented pace. Explore ways to take control of your own brain health, avoid chronic diseases that are devastating communities worldwide, and expand your mind's capacity beyond anything you can imagine.

Eat to Live Podcast - Joel Fuhrman, M.D. is a board-certified family physician, seven-time New York Times best-selling author and internationally recognized expert on nutrition and natural healing. He specializes in preventing and reversing disease through nutritional methods. Dr. Fuhrman is the President of the Nutritional Research Foundation and on the faculty of Northern Arizona University, Health Sciences division. He coined the term “Nutritarian” to describe a nutrient-dense eating style, designed to prevent cancer, slow aging, and extend lifespan.

Plantstrong Podcast - The mission of the PLANTSTRONG podcast is to further the advancement of all things within the plant-based movement. We advocate for the scientifically proven benefits of plant-based living and envision a world that universally understands, promotes, and prescribes plants as the solution to empowering your health, enhancing your performance, and restoring the environment. We welcome and support you wherever you are on your PLANTSTRONG journey and we hope you enjoy the show.

Websites

The Brain Docs - Drs. Dean and Ayesha Sherzai, affectionately known as 'Team Sherzai'. Undoubtedly, everyone has been affected or knows someone who has been affected by the devastating effects of dementia and Alzheimers. Whether you are at risk, or if a loved one is suffering from cognitive decline, Team Sherzai lay out actionable, research-based solutions to this rapidly growing issue in our society.

RUOK? Your Natter Matters - Ageing is not without challenges – health, relocation, loss, isolation or difficulties completing tasks that were once simple – any of these can lead to friends, family members or neighbours becoming disconnected from their community and support networks.   A simple chat can mean everything to a friend or loved one who might be struggling.  The RUOK? ‘Your natter matters’ campaign is backed by Stockland CARE Foundation and calls on members of our older generation to use their life experience to support each other through life’s ups and downs.

Blue Zones - Dan Buettner, Blue Zones founder, is a National Geographic Fellow and multiple New York Times bestselling author. He has discovered five places in the world – dubbed blue zones – where people live the longest, and are healthiest: Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Ikaria, Greece, and Loma Linda, California.

Forks over Knives - Forks Over Knives empowers people to live healthier lives by changing the way the world understands nutrition. We provide the tools and resources to make a plant-based lifestyle easy and enjoyable.
The Kindness Pandemic Campaign was set up to support older people during the Coronavirus Pandemic. To read more about how you can participate in the campaign, click here.

Books

The Alzheimer's Solution: A Breakthrough Program to Prevent and Reverse the Symptoms of Cognitive Decline at Every Age
Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression - and the Unexpected Solutions by Johann Hari
The Blue Zones by Dan Buettner
Save Your Brain by Dr Ginni Mansberg
The Brain's Way of Healing: Remarkable Discoveries and Recoveries from the Frontiers of Neuroplasticity by Norman Doidge

Search library catalogue

IWC Library Adult Programs - upcoming library events as well as podcasts, videos, art, history and regular community programs

Apps

BrainTrack App - Dementia Australia - BrainTrack is a free app that helps you monitor and understand changes in cognition over time, which you can use to start a conversation with your GP. The app will help you explore this common concern, providing brain health information through fun, travel-themed games that test your cognition. The resulting conversation and monitoring may lead to an earlier diagnosis of dementia.

Reveri - Harness Reveri’s decades of scientific research and clinical experience to change your mind and improve your life. Reveri’s self-hypnosis sessions can help you anywhere in just a few minutes. Experience immediate relief from stress, insomnia, and manage your pain perception effectively. Dr. David Spiegel is Reveri's Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer. He is also a psychiatrist with more than 45 years of clinical and research experience studying stress, pain, sleep and hypnosis. He has written thirteen books, 404 scientific journal articles and 170 book chapters. He was educated at Harvard and Yale and now works at Stanford. He started Reveri so that you can tap his expertise and change your mind.

Do you have a favourite podcast, website, book or app you would like to share? Get in touch with the Healthy Ageing Team, we'd love to hear from you.

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