Can you slow the aging process? Part I

The answer is an absolute YES! What I’m talking about here is not having plastic surgery, botox injections or magic pills that come with a promise of making you years younger. What I do want to talk about is really taking care of our bodies, our minds, and our spirits. We are not one dimensional and all of our parts work together to create who we are. Taking care of all aspects of ourselves keeps us young and vibrant. One area though that I want to focus on today is biological markers of aging and the major factors that cause us to age and what we can do to reduce and slow these processes.

First, as we age these things increase:

• Systolic Blood Pressure
• Insulin Resistance
• Body Fat Percentage
• Lipid Ratios

and these things decrease:

• Aerobic Capacity
• Muscle Mass
• Glucose Tolerance
• Strength
• Temperature Regulation
• Immune Function

And the major aging factors include:

• Free Radical Damage
• Chronic Inflammation
• Syndrome X or Hyperinsulinemia
• Excess or Diminished Cortisol (Stress)

What happens is the body literally rusts from the inside out! Think of an apple turning brown, fuel burning in your car, iron rusting and fire. All of these things are oxidative processes which means these things are reactions involving oxygen. Of course oxygen is a good thing since we need it to breathe and to metabolize (burn) nutrients but it can also “burn” our own tissues.  Our bodies, the “engine”, needs a cooling system that will help prevent the damage.

Antioxidants are part of your body’s cooling system and are extremely important to help protect cells from being damaged by oxygen. I’m sure by now you have heard of antioxidants but did you know how important they really are to prevent all kinds of age-related diseases? They are one of the keys to staying healthy and vibrant as you age.

The Oxygen-Reducing Radical Absorption Capacity or ORAC for short is a method for measuring the total antioxidant activity of a substance.

Here is a list of ORAC values of some foods high in antioxidants:

Serving size is 3.5 ounces

• Dark Chocolate – 13, 120
• Rosemary – 6, 000
• Prunes – 5,770
• Blueberries – 2,400
• Blackberries – 2, 036
• Kale – 1,770
• Green Tea – 1,686
• Strawberries – 1,540
• Broccoli Florets – 890
• Red Grapes – 739
• Carrots – 207

The best way to get your antioxidants is to eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables. Most nutritionists including myself now recommend eating 8-10 servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Most people don’t even reach 3 servings a day and think ketchup is a vegetable serving!

Vegetables and fruits are rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber and are loaded with phytochemicals with antioxidant properties. If you just haven’t been able to get that many servings in daily then I would highly recommend you supplement with a high antioxidant supplement. Afterall wouldn’t you want to ensure that you are protecting yourself from the free radical damage that is going on right now inside your body? Stay young and healthy by eating well, destressing, exercising and taking an anitoxidant supplement!

Here is a list of some high quality antioxidant products to choose from:

• Thai-go (has an ORAC score of 51,939 and tastes delicious!)
• Super Antioxidant
• CO-Q10
• Green Tea Extract
• SOD w/Gliadin
• Alpha Lipoic Acid
• Vitamin E w/Selenium
• Citrus Bioflavanoids
• IF-Relief (another favorite)
• IF-C or IF-C, Chinese TCM Concentrate
• Carotenoid Blend
• Zinc
• Grapine, High Potency
• Grapine w/Protectors
• Perfect Eyes
• Brain Protex
• Herbasaurs Chewable Antioxidant with Grapine (especially for kids)

Click here to read a newsletter article on anti-aging.

If you aren’t sure which supplement would be best for you send me an e-mail @  Paige@mynsp.com.

To your health!