chicken, fish and organic fruits and vegetables in her extensive organic garden. "I love our dark greens, such as spinach, basil and arugula. We grow tomatoes, which are full of potassium and we have lots of citrus, avocadoes and artichokes. ` She stays away From salt as much as possible, but finds that more difficult then avoiding sugary food.


'Mv father was a doctor and he didn't want us addicted to sugar, so he'd give us salt when we were babies," she says. "Needless to say, if I see potato chips. I'm in trouble.' she adds with a laugh.

Spreading the word

Seymour is eager to share her advice with other women her age and has seized the opportunity to spread the word about heart disease awarness. Just what does she tell them? I advise women to have their cholesterol and blood pressure checked regularly, avoid salt, keep laughter and love in your life and try to get some exercise in regularly," she says. "Even if it's a walk around the neighborhood with the dog or a friend, anything that gets the heart moving is great. Or dance! Our culture has stopped dancing. I chose dance for my paintings to entourage movement for women."

Embracing a healthy life

Seymour successes and health are a testament to her beliefs, considerable drive, energy, and commitment to good health. She's also proof of the rewards of embracing life's challenges gracefully, It's about acceptance. It's about accepting where you are in life, what you can do, and trying to maintain as much as you can in terms of flexibility and good physical and emotional health," she say. Her secret? Everything in moderation, I think, and wanting to live. I think it's wanting wellness rather than fearing and allowing yourself to go into a downward spiral of illness. My life isn't perfect, but I'm incredibly blessed. I don't take a minute of my life or a moment of my health for granted. I'm enjoying life while I have it and doing everything I can to make it better."