You Are Getting Old
There is no getting around it. No matter what we say, we’re all getting older — every minute of every day – but the word “aging” often feels like a dirty word. Why is there such stigma attached to getting older? How can we prepare to transition through the different stages of life? I, a physician now in my late 70’s is asking myself these questions, and many more, since I reach what people often refer as the twilight of life. As I advance in years I have observed how my body and mind are changing in real-time and have closely seen changes among of my patients, friends and family during this stage of their lives. Building on decades of my own observation as a physician and the latest cutting edge research, I will explore how I, and the rest of us — whether we are in our 20s, 50s or 80s — can look at getting older in a new light and be the best version of ourselves at any age.
What is Aging
The “wear and tear” paradigm of aging maintains that as an organism ages, the process of cellular damage and toxic metabolic byproducts eventually exceeds the organism’s ability to repair or remove them, leading to their accumulation . This, in turn, results in the increase in the number of aging cells and a decrease in effective stem cell populations, or an alteration of their potency. So aging is characterized as the accumulation of damage leading to dysfunction. Figuratively speaking, the aging of an organism is like that of an automobile, eventually as parts wear out and malfunction more quickly than they can be repaired or replaced, the automobile becomes a jalopy destined for the junkyard. This is assumed to be the same case regarding cells, even stem cells, and consequently the tissues, organs, organ systems, and the organism whose functioning is based on those cells.
Aging is defined as a physiologic state of progressive decline of organ functions which results in the development of age related diseases. Normally there is a continues break down and simultaneous regeneration of cells in the body. When the regenerative function diminishes this results in aging and once the function is fully exhausted death is inevitable.
Biological Age vs Chronological age
For many of us who have been to school reunions may notice the different rates in how people age. I remember a friend tell me after coming from a school reunion he was shock to see how old looking his high school girlfriend looked and felt sort of embarrassed to admit that they had a romantic past. Yes, there is difference in your actual age and biological age. Biological age measures the pace at which your body has aged for every year you’ve been alive. It reflects a combination of your genetics, accumulated lifestyle factors, and other determinants such as demographics, diet, and exercise habits.
What causes this phenomenon of aging? To date the free radical mitochondrial theory is the most prominent theory of aging that has survived the test of time. This theory subscribes that the oxidative stress within the mitochondria (the metabolic engine of the cells) can lead to vicious cycle causing progressive damage. So if aging results from oxidative stress, it may then be corrected by environmental, nutritional and pharmacological strategies.
Free radicals which causes oxidative stress are formed in cells via every metabolic process. These free radicals are important to ones natural defense mechanism. These free radicals help neutralize toxins, destroy waste products and destroys harmful microorganisms.
The problem with free radicals is when one has excessive amounts that it causes damage to ones own tissues and especially the regenerative cells. Free radicals inflict damage upon other compounds by stealing electrons from them, this leads to inflammation and then to scar formation. In blood vessels it causes inflammation in the inner walls which causes hardening of the vessels resulting in hypertension and compromise in circulation to different organs of the body. Someone has said “You are as old as your blood vessels.”
External Sources of Free Radicals
Food is the biggest source of free radicals. Hydrogenated oils, fried foods in restaurants when oil used is at high temperature for hours, highly refined foods, charcoal grilled meat and other animal food products cooked at high temperatures are known to have high free radical content. Environmental sources of free radicals are toxins, industrial pollutants, pesticides, smoking and home chemicals. Many times patients call me with concern after reading about side effects of the medications prescribed to them. In my mind I wish they would read about the side effects of the foods and drinks they eat which has caused their illness. Emotional stress also is also increase free radicals.
- Fats and Oils: Fats and oils can become oxidized during storage as a result of exposure to light, air or heat. This creates free radicals and causes the unpleasant odors that you associate with rancidity. When fats or oils are heated to high temperatures, as they are with deep-frying, they can become oxidized, creating free radicals. Saturated fats are less likely than unsaturated fats to become oxidized. When cooking fats are reused, they become more oxidized and produce even more free radicals.
- Cooked and Processed Meats: Because meat contains fats, those fats can also become oxidized when cooked at high temperatures. The iron found in meat, especially red meat, can also become oxidized. Preservatives used in processed meats — including sausages, bacon, ham, pepperoni, hotdogs, salami, corned beef and many deli meats — may also create free radicals. The American Institute for Cancer Research recommends avoiding processed meats and marinating meats you intend to grill.
- Alcohol Risks: Alcoholic beverages have been identified as a human carcinogen. The National Cancer Institute says that one way that alcohol increases the risk of cancer is by creating free radicals in the body. If you drink alcohol, the American Institute for Cancer Research recommends limiting your intake to no more than two drinks a day if you are a man and one drink a day if you are a woman. While moderate alcohol intake may have some heart health benefits, these should be weighed against the additional cancer risk.
- Smoking Risks: Smoking cigarettes can lead to illness and death. Free radicals in inhaled smoke are thought to be partly responsible for making smokers sick. Smoking leads to increased production of an enzyme that breaks down collagen, so it reduces your skin’s elasticity and makes it look more aged, sagging and wrinkled. Smokers have characteristic patterns of wrinkling of the skin, including lines around the mouth and “crow’s feet” around the eyes.
- Antioxidant Supplements: Although antioxidants from food can help combat free radical damage in your body, antioxidants may be harmful when taken out of their natural context, as is the case with antioxidant supplements. One possibility is that high doses of antioxidants may actually have a pro-oxidant effect, indicating that too much of a good thing isn’t better. The National Cancer Institute and the American Institute for Cancer Research both recommend using antioxidant supplements with caution. Consult your doctor before taking any supplements.
Sources of Antioxidants
To offset free radicals one must to eat more fresh vegetables, nuts, legumes and fruits that are rich in antioxidants. However we are advise not to over eat since more free radicals are produced by the resulting increased body metabolic activity due to increased caloric overload.
It is important to remember that over cooking and processing of food destroys antioxidants so one ends up with more calories with less antioxidants.
|
Rank |
Food item |
Serving size |
Total antioxidant capacity |
|
1 |
Small Red Bean (dried) |
Half cup |
13,727 |
|
2 |
Wild blueberry |
1 cup |
13,427 |
|
3 |
Red kidney bean (dried) |
Half cup |
13,259 |
|
4 |
Pinto bean |
Half cup |
11,864 |
|
5 |
Blueberry (cultivated) |
1 cup |
9,019 |
|
6 |
Cranberry |
1 cup (whole) |
8,983 |
|
7 |
Artichoke (cooked) |
1 cup (hearts) |
7,904 |
|
8 |
Blackberry |
1 cup |
7,701 |
|
9 |
Prune |
Half cup |
7,291 |
|
10 |
Raspberry |
1 cup |
6,058 |
|
11 |
Strawberry |
1 cup |
5,938 |
|
12 |
Red Delicious apple |
1 whole |
5,900 |
|
13 |
Granny Smith apple |
1 whole |
5,381 |
|
14 |
Pecan |
1 ounce |
5,095 |
|
15 |
Sweet cherry |
1 cup |
4,873 |
|
16 |
Black plum |
1 whole |
4,844 |
|
17 |
Russet potato (cooked) |
1 whole |
4,649 |
|
18 |
Black bean (dried) |
Half cup |
4,181 |
|
19 |
Plum |
1 whole |
4,118 |
|
20 |
Gala apple |
1 whole |
3,903 |
“There are 300,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (sextillion) free radicals ravaging our bodies every day and our genes to combat them decrease as we age significantly from age 20 till death. We need all the anti-oxidants we could get and stay away from foods with free radicals.
The fountain of youth is still myth for us humans. Until we have access to the “tree of life,” the eating food rich in anti-oxidants and staying away for foods loaded with free radicals are our best bet to beat the clock. Of course this is not substitute to a healthy life style.
Aging is inevitable but let us not be in a hurry to get there. Invest in your most valuable asset your health. Laurence T. Gayao
