Did you know that much of your body is really in its teenage years? Or even toddlerhood?
You may have been counting your birthdays diligently. But your body is on a different schedule. Cells are reborn and tissue is renewed frequently during your lifetime.
rnBy applying his revolutionary cell dating procedure throughout the body, stem cell researcher, Jonas Frisen from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, found some startling numbers . . .
If you’re in your 30’s your ribs may be as young as 15 years old.
And your liver is no more than 2 years old – no matter if you’re 20 or 80 years old!
Your Body Is Always Renewing Itself
You may think your whole body is aging right along with you. But according to research, even your brain and heart cells renew themselves to some extent over the course of our lifetime.
So how can we feel closer in age to our ribs? rnFirst, and most importantly, how old we feel has a lot to do with attitude.
As Sophia Loren said, “There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.”
rnNothing beats age back better than a zest for life.rnBut there are a few additional tactics you can apply in your diet to make this zestfulness go even farther . . .
Eat Less And Live Longer
Scientists have discovered that eating very little helps slow down aging dramatically and boost your immune health. When you follow a ketogenic diet, as this is kind of diet is called, you produce special molecules called ketones that in moderate amounts helps protect our cells from oxidative stress.[1]
Restricting your diet to achieve this effect is not for everybody. It takes tremendous discipline.
But don’t worry. If you don’t want to go to such an extreme, you’ve got options.
rnMost of us can start off by simply eating less. Some of the longest living people in the world, the Okinawans, maintain a custom around eating called hara hachi bu. They only eat to 80% fullness. Other research shows that eating a big lunch and very little for breakfast or dinner can also help improve health. This is the traditional way of eating in the Mediterranean.
rnBy changing how you eat and how much you eat, you can take a load off your body.
But there are also foods you can selectively put into your diet to prevent aging and stay young.
Stay Young With Antioxidant-Rich Foods
You’ve probably heard of the value of having antioxidants like vitamin A in your diet. These special molecules neutralize damaging free radicals.
For years, health experts have argued free radicals cause aging. Now we’re learning how they do this more specifically. New research demonstrates that free radicals seem to cause particular damage when it comes to your cells’ power plants, the mitochondria.[2]
As the power plants in your cells, mitochondria are right at ground zero when it comes to free radical exposure. As power plants, they are at the center of oxidation, where fuel is turned into energy. During the course of this normal metabolic process, lots of free radicals are produced.
When your cells’ mitochondria are damaged, your cells can’t perform well. They can’t take care of their specialized tasks. Nor can they reproduce properly in order to build healthy new cells and tissues. When the mitochondria are damaged, your whole body suffers.
According to preliminary research, mitochondrial damage seems bring on muscle mass loss, grey hair and even heart disease.[3] Damaged mitochondria have been linked to cancer, muscular dystrophy and Alzheimer’s disease.
Diet is key to helping your mitochondria fend off this onslaught. The more antioxidant-rich foods you take in, the more your body can absorb and neutralize the free radicals created in the mitochondria.
What kinds of foods give you lots of antioxidants? rnLook for brightly-colored fruits and vegetables. Plant pigments like beta-carotene, lycopene, chlorophyll and anthocyanins all do a great job sweeping up free radicals. Tannin-rich foods like green tea and coffee also give your body this kind of antioxidant nutrition. Chlorella gives the body a very good supply of the powerful antioxidants vitamin A and chlorophyll.
Supply Your Cells With The Materials They Need For Renewal
To help your cells renew themselves more easily, you also need a good supply of protein and nucleic acids. Your body uses protein to construct any new tissue as well as the enzymes you need for proper cellular function. Nucleic acids are used to build new DNA. Without this critical ingredient, your cells cannot reproduce properly.
Chlorella’s unique chlorella growth factor (CGF) gives your body one of the most concentrated forms of nucleic acids found on the planet. Chlorella’s CGF seems to be a key factor behind chlorella’s role in speeding healthy tissue regeneration.
Feed Your Body Right To Stay Young
People go to extremes to look younger – botox injections and surgery. But these “fixes” only treat the outside. However, if you work with your body’s internal renewal power, you don’t have to hazard these unhealthy youth-boosters. And you’ll feel better too!
By paying attention to your diet you can help your body fight off aging. With antioxidants you give your body the weapons it needs to fend off free radicals. By eating a little less, you reduce the stress on your systems. And by giving your cells critical construction nutrients, your cells can more easily repair themselves and rebuild.
Stay young by eating young. Give your body what it needs to stay vital and it will reward you with the energy and beauty that no longer is reserved for the young!
Sources:
[1] Shimazu T et al. Suppression of Oxidative Stress by β-Hydroxybutyrate, an Endogenous Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor. Science, December 6, 2012.
[2] Dai DF et al. Mitochondrial oxidative stress in aging and healthspan. Longevity & Healthspan 2014, 3:6rn[3] Baillie KU et al. Penn-led Study Ties Aging to Oxidative Damage in Mitochondria. U. Penn press release. Sept 25, 2014.