Anti-Aging « Natural Health Answers

Posts filed under 'Anti-Aging'

Stress

The last month has been one full of stressful events for me and thus the blog has taken a back seat. Alas I am coming out of the craziness that sometimes life throws our way and wanted to talk a bit about stress.

It’s something that we all experience. We all deal with it in very different ways. Some of us retreat, some of us lash out, and some of us deny. There are all kinds of ways that people try and “make it” through the day. For me it’s pulling back and saying no I can’t do that newsletter this month or no I can’t call that person back right away or even deciding that I need to take a break from work. I NEED to do this or else I won’t be able to recover and I will be useless to anyone who needs me. It’s been a process but I’ve finally learned that I matter and that the world won’t fall apart because I take a break. I find this to be difficult for many people especially women. If we don’t do this we will deplete our reserves and eventually we won’t have anything left to give. And then illness is close behind.

This is a reminder to take or I should say give yourself a BREAK! It’s good for your body, mind and soul. You’ll feel recharged and ready to take on the necesary things we all must do in life.

Remember everyone deals with stress differently but it’s very important to deal with it effectively for better health.

Here are some great ways to help you deal with stress:

Breathing exercises
Make a cup of tea
Take Distress Remedy (I did and it’s amazing stuff)
Talk to a friend/family member
Get a massage
Meditate
Take a walk outside and observe the beauty of our world
Do stretching exercises
Dance
Scream (do this at home alone so you don’t disturb anyone!)
Punch a pillow or a punching bag
Listen to soothing music
Participate in your favorite hobby
Talk to a professional therapist
Blow bubbles
Fly a kite
Nourish your body with whole foods like fruits and vegetables rich in vitamins and minerals which help the body cope with stress
Take Colloidal Minerals a wonderful tasting liquid mineral product that replenishes minerals lost during stress
Read an article on my web site: Are you Overstressed?
Read a book
Rent a funny movie
Plant a garden
Buy some flowers for your desk or home or both!
Go on a hike
Take a vacation to a place you’ve always wanted to visit
Play with children
Paint a picture
FILL IN YOUR WAY YOU DEAL WITH STRESS

Of course you’ve probably heard all of this before but sometimes the stress of everyday life or even a very big stressful event takes our breath away and we don’t take the time to take care of ourselves. I felt like this topic bears repeating as it really hit home with me these past few weeks. I did many of these things on the list and it made a huge difference for me in the way I dealt with the very stressful things going on in my life.

Let’s continue the list: Do you have an effective way you deal with stress? Please share by leaving a comment!

2 comments March 22, 2008

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: