3 Secrets for Healthy Aging

An apple a day…….keeps the years away

3 things we are doing make us age faster, but our fork can actually help us conquer the aging process. What would staying healthy as you age allow you to do?

Aging happens.   But… the processes that lead to aging can be sped up or slowed down.  Aging doesn’t need to be a dirty word when we can discover how to bring in a few healthy habits.  

The 3 processes happening in our bodies that lead to faster aging are:  

• inflammation,

• oxidation, and 

• glycation 

Fortunately, each of those can be improved with lifestyle changes.  Let’s see how.  

Inflammation 

Inflammation refers to your body’s process of fighting against things that harm it, such as infections, injuries and toxins, in an attempt to heal itself.  When something damages your cells, your body releases chemicals that trigger a response from your immune system. 

Aging is characterized by increasing, low-grade inflammation.  Indeed, this process is so impactful that it’s been called “inflamm-aging”.  Thus, healthy aging will require limiting inflammation.  

Here are some causes of inflammation that you might recognize for yourself or a loved one:

• Insulin resistance

• Diabetes

• Obesity

• Metabolic Syndrome (Pre-diabetes)

• Obstructive sleep apnea / sleep loss

• Sedentary lifestyle

• Poor diet

• Psychosocial stress / depression

How to prevent inflammation and be healthier as you age?  You have heard it before – whole foods instead of processed foods, and plenty of plant foods.  

Per The Lancet Oncology, “Hanging on to your youthfulness may be as simple as picking up plant-based foods and putting down the meat and dairy.”   What youth promoting food can you add today?

Oxidation

As your body goes about its daily functions it produces oxidative free radicals.  Free radicals sound just like what they are – something that is free to go around causing damage, in this case to your cells.  If we are eating high-quality, healthy food then we are bringing in anti-oxidants that protect from these free radicals.  

However, when the diet quality is poor, a person is eating excess calories, has sleep disturbances, drinking more than the recommended level of alcohol, or has diabetes, then oxidation can reign supreme.  This can lead to chronic diseases like cancer, heart disease, cognitive decline and vision loss.  In other words, the opposite of the healthy aging that we would like. 

Our contribution to limiting oxidative damage is by eating foods high in vitamins (C and E) and minerals (selenium, manganese, zinc), as well as the phytonutrients found in plants.  

Which plants offer the most protection?  Say hello to your healthy aging friends that are high in antioxidants:  artichokes, Goji berries, raspberries, kale, red cabbage, beans, beets, and spinach.  Have you eaten any of those today?

Glycation

Glycation is a process that occurs when the blood sugar (glucose) is too high.  As the blood sugar goes up, the opportunity for sugars to bind with proteins in the blood increases, forming unwanted molecules in the process.  These are called “Advanced Glycation End -products” or, appropriate to our topic of healthy aging, AGE’s for short. 

I frequently find myself explaining this process to the people I coach.  People have likened this process (glycation) of glucose binding with proteins to when bread bakes and the top gets crusty.  

In our body, the cells get “crusty” or less flexible.  This is what is being measured in the Hemoglobin A1C test.  The A1c determines how an elevated blood sugar over several months impacts the cells.  Inflexible cells have a hard time making it through the tiny capillaries in our blood stream and that is why many organs that rely on capillaries to bring nutrients (eyes, feet, kidney, etc.) are impacted in those with diabetes.  

In fact, an increase in Hemoglobin A1c is associated with 4 extra years of biological age.  That is going the wrong direction from our goal of healthy aging!

If your are sensing a theme in what allows us to be healthy as we age you are right.  Whole food and lots of plants.  

To avoid glycation or AGE’s specifically, one should get more fish, legumes, vegetables, fruits and whole grains.  On the list of foods to decrease would be white sugar, high fructose corn syrup, solid fats, fatty meats, full-fat dairy and processed foods.  

Conclusion

Is this the first you realized the power of the fork to help you slow down aging?  

For thoughts on how to use your fork as a weapon to conquer healthy aging, I would suggest reviewing the list of  healthy foods in my book, “Wellness is More Than Weight: Easy Steps to Change Your Health Habits and Your Life”. 

Healthy aging is within your reach – just a fork’s length away!