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Longevity Medicine: News
Urban Cycler

LONGEVITY MEDICINE

                                      Longevity Medicine

 

Longevity Medicine is a fascinating and fast-growing field. It aims at expanding LiFESPAN, the number of years a person will live. But given the sad state of health many people suffer once they reach their sixties, it’s second goal is even more important: expanding HEALTHSPAN, the number of healthy years we will live. The logic is straight forward: as aging is the main risk factor for many chronic  diseases, from Heart Disease to Cancer, Alzheimer’s and Diabetes, slowing the aging process will therefore decrease chronic disease and “add life to your years.”

Research shows the crucial influence of lifestyle on living a long and healthy live. Only 15 percent of chronic disease are due to genetic inheritance. A healthy lifestyle and nutritional interventions lead to epigenetic changes that make the essential difference. 

A breakthrough in longevity research came with the development of EPIGENETIC CLOCKS, a test that allows us to determine if our biological age is older or younger than our chronological age. Knowing one’s biological age is not just a number game, but correlates with many diseases of aging: a just one-year increase in biological age is associated with a 6% increase in developing cancer in the next three years. It also corelates with coronary plaque and cognitive decline. 

The elegance of epigenetic clocks is that they can monitor the impact of your lifestyle and therapeutic efforts. E.g. smoking and a poor diet can accelerate your biological age, while exercise, good sleep and various therapeutic interventions can slow and even reverse it. The goal is to reduce your biological age for years and maybe even decades below your chronological age.

By measuring various core BIOMARKERS OF AGING, we get a picture where your weak spots are, and which personalized interventions will help you to live at peak health: 

 

Mitochondrial Dysfunction leads to a decrease of cellular energy production. Without sufficient energy cells will malfunction, promoting senescence and fatigue. 

 

Chronic Inflammation can damage cells and organs due a constantly switched on immune response. In the digestive track, it can promote a leaky gut, where toxins and bacteria can pass across the intestinal wall into the bloodstream, promoting food allergies and autoimmune disease.

 

Hormone Deficiencies, often due to the age-depended decline of adrenal, thyroid, sex and growth hormones, lead to suboptimal regeneration and energy.

 

Insulin Resistance happens when cells are not responding to insulin. As glucose can’t get into cells, blood sugar builds up, resulting in Metabolic Syndrome, diabetes and premature aging. Culprits of Insulin Resistance are a high sugar and starch diet, junk foods, abdominal obesity, chronic stress, lack of sleep and exercise, and environmental toxins.

 

Gut Microbiome Imbalance due to food allergies, fungal and parasitic infections or bacterial dysbiosis is a core contributor to many chronic diseases. 

 

Oxidative stress is the accumulation of free radicals. Caused by processed foods, smoking, alcohol, iron accumulation, pollution and exposure to pesticides or industrial chemicals, it damages tissues and accelerates aging.

 

Slow Autophagy allows old and damaged cells to pile up, resulting in waste accumulation and a declined life span. The induction of Autophagy e.g. through intermittend fasting is crucial for proper metabolism and regeneration.

 

Here are some lifestyle habits that promote longevity:

  • Eat a healthy diet, which for most people consists of a Mediterranean or Paleo style diet. 

  • Practice portion control.

  • Fasting and Intermittend Fasting can stimulate stem cell release, DNA repair, increase insulin sensitivity and mitochondrial function, and promote brain plasticity and neurogenesis.

  • Know your family history - of Diabetes, Alzheimer’s or Heart Disease - which might point to your potential  vulnerabilities, 

  • Practice a low-toxicity lifestyle regarding smoking, alcohol and drugs.

  • Eat organic and avoid exposure to toxic chemicals, heavy metals, pesticides, microplastics and mold.

  • Cope with stress by taking up meditation.

  • Sleep at least 7 to 8 hours with sufficient deep sleep and REM sleep.

  • Exercise daily - aerobics and resistance - and be aware of the negative effects of muscle loss. 

  • Keep your friends close and engage in community activities and service.

  • Cultivate a spiritual outlook that gives purpose and meaning.

 

Top Longevity Supplements:

Recent research points to promising compounds that have the potential to extend longevity and improve life quality.

  • Curcumin

  • Resveratrol

  • Omega 3

  • Alpha Ketoglutarate

  • CoQ-10

  • Vitamin C, Astaxanthin and bioflavonoids

  • Adaptogens like Astragalus and Rodiola

  • Glucosamine sulfate and Hyaluronic acid

  • M-tor inhibitors like Glucophage and Rapamycin

  • NAD boosters like NR or NMR

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