What goes on in your head is another factor in a healthy lifestyle and successful weight management. The way you think about yourself and your world influences, and is influenced by, how you fell and how you act. Certain kinds of thinking produce negative emotions, which can undermine a healthy lifestyle.

When we compare ourselves to an internally held picture of an "ideal self," we are more likely to feel low self-esteem and negative emotion. The "ideal self" we envision is often the result of having adopted perfectionistic goals and believes "If I don't go things perfectly, I'm a failure" or "It's terrible if I'm not thin. "When we accept these irrational beliefs, we may actually cause ourselves stress and emotion conflict. The remedy is to challenge such beliefs and replace them with more realistic ones.

The beliefs and attitudes you hold give rise to self-talk, an internal dialogue you carry on with yourself about events that happen to and around you. When you talk yourself through the steps of a job and then praise yourself when it's successfully completed, you are engaging in positive self-talk. When you make self-deprecating remarks or angry and guilt-producing comments and when you blame yourself unnecessarily, you are engaging in negative self-talk. Negative self-talk can undermine efforts at self-control and lead to feelings of anxiety and depression.

Your beliefs and attitudes influence how you interpret what happens to you and what you can expect in the future, as well a how you feel and react. Realistic beliefs and goals as well as positive self-talk and problem-solving efforts support a healthy lifestyle.

High levels of well-being among elders, especially those who remain independent. Although depression is one of the most common psychological effects of aging, it is most common among institutionalized and low-income people. Researchers believe that depression is related to the loss of receptors for the neurotransmitter serotonin. Loss of these receptors also may cause cognitive difficulties.

In later life, life transitions and stressful events can become frequent companions that increase the likelihood and severity of depression. Among these stressors are the loss of loved ones, including spouse and friends; physical disability; perceived loss of physical attractiveness; inability to psychologically defend oneself from unpleasant events; inability to care for oneself, which forces one to depend upon caregivers and long-term care; social isolation; and inevitably, the approach of death. In elders, depression often leads to malnutrition and may manifest itself as either anorexia (loss of appetite) or obesity. Anorectic elders lose weight and muscle mass, putting them at risk for chronic conditions such as osteoporosis.

Alcoholism is prevalent among socially isolated or depressed elders. People who consume excessive amounts of alcohol often have diets low in essential nutrients. Over time, excessive alcohol use can cause chronic liver disease, pancreatitis, secondary vitamin and mineral deficiencies, and protein-energy malnutrition.