Changing Aging recently had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Brent Ridge, who is Vice President for Health Living at Martha Stewart. Prior to joining Martha Stewart he was on the faculty at Mount Sinai Hospital and was a driving force in the development of the Martha Stewart Center for Living at Mount Sanai, which is a new center for the management of chronic health conditions and for the promotion of healthy aging.Dr. Ridge is available to answer your questions every week on ‘Ask Dr. Brent’ on Martha Stewart Living Radio. Dr. Ridge is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. He completed his post-graduate training at Columbia University in internal medicine and a fellowship in Geriatrics at Mount Sinai. He also holds an MBA from New York University.1. Geriatrics isn’t a specialty that most physicians choose, so what drew you to this field?There were several reasons that I chose this field. First, I spent a lot time with my grandparents as a child, and I always had a wonderful rapport with older patients. Second, I love the natural narratives of medicine, and I’m always enthralled by the personal histories of my older patients. Lastly, it was a strategic decision on my part. Although I enjoyed the practice of medicine, my real passion was in business, and I knew that for the entirety of my career the aging of the baby boomers was going to drive virtually any business.2. You’ve said aging is ‘living.’ We believe that here at Ecumen, too. What does ‘aging is living’ mean to you?There are tremendous stereotypes surrounding aging that we really need to dispel. Aging should not be synonymous with loss of productivity or vitality. There are challenges that come along with getting older just as there are social and physical challenges at nearly every stage of life. I think that one of the reasons we have such negative images of aging in our society is that there has never been a critical mass of positive role models. Obviously, this is about to change in BIG way.3. Do we need a new name for geriatrics, or do we need geriatrics to be looking at life and aging differently?I think as an academic discipline, ‘geriatrics’ is an appropriate name. However, to the healthcare consumer, it is very distasteful. If we want more people to approach aging in a proactive way, we’ve got to be able to reach them and compel them. It’s just good marketing. This is one of the reasons that the new facility at Mount Sinai does not have the word ‘aging’ or ‘geriatrics’ in its name.4. I’ve read that you want to live to 100, how much of getting there is up to a person’s approach to lifestyle, rather than genetics?Genetics are somehow involved in virtually every aspect of health, whether we’ve identified the specific loci or not; however, my philosophy has always been that EVERY decision that you’ve made throughout your life (or that was made for you) contributes in some way to how well you age. It’s foolish to overlook the impact that diet, exercise, and not smoking has on longevity.5. Fast forward to 100; how do you want to be living?I hope that whatever I’m doing is exactly what I WANT to be doing. Can anyone ask for more than that?6. In the U.S. and globally, we’re facing an unprecedented age wave. But aging has often been shoved aside rather than embraced in public policy, media and business. How do you see that changing? Are we on to a new movement, rising around aging?I think there will be much more attention focused on the issues of older America, simply because there are going to be more older Americans€”more vocal ones at that€”demanding that their needs be met.7. We have a whole industry built on anti-aging, why should people look forward to growing old?Philosophically speaking, I look at every new day as a way to learn something new about myself. As a physician, I’m fascinated with the way the body works and what’s happening to it as it continues to change and ‘evolve’. Even for the average person, having an understanding of the basics of anatomy and physiology can be very powerful in terms of forging an understanding of what types of lifestyle modifications can pay off in a big way.8. What does your role entail at Martha Stewart?I’m leading the development of a new core area of the company focused specifically on health and wellness. The focus is not as narrow as aging but on healthy living in general. Martha and I both realize that a lot of people read the magazines, watch the TV shows, listen to Sirius radio, and visit the website, and if we somehow influence just a small number of those millions of people who enjoy our product to learn something new about their health or to make healthier life choices, then we’ve done something good.9. What top tips do you have for enhancing longevity and living well?This is actually much simpler than people expect: