By: Vinod Nigam
The goal of my diet – style is eating for optimal health and longevity. What greater benefit could there be than living healthfully and actively into old age with no dependence on medications and almost no risk of heart disease, diabetes and dementia.
—— Joel Fuhrman
The power of positive thinking is vital for maintaining happiness, good health and longevity.
—— Eraldo Banovac
People live longer when they decide to become passionately involved in something beyond themselves.
—— Richard Forth
Someone whose heart is at peace is blessed. Peace of mind comes when we let go of our attachments. Attachments come from foolishness, and foolishness develops when we do not know the purpose of our lives.
—— Ilchi Lee
Longevity or long life is only worth when one is healthy, active and without any disease otherwise living beyond 100 in ICU or hospital or on bed at home leading to vegetative life is of no use or purpose. You must be healthy, happy, enjoying and taking part in most of the happy home events such as birthday party of grand children then living long is fruitful and worth, you must feel yourself young. We should not keep only number of years as goal, but health and disease free years. Living long with chronic diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, chronic renal disease, diabetes, heart problem and cancer is a nightmare for the patient as well as family members both physically as well as economically. More and more people are believing that one can cross 100 and remain healthy. It is not possible to revert the process of aging or stop ageing but now it is definitely possible to slow the rate of aging by healthy life style and stress busting practices.
Genetics also plays a role in aging process but its share is not that much what we feel but much less, it is approximately playing 25 percent part of body. Though scientists believe that genes are programmed to affect aging by controlling the regenerative and degenerative process of body at cellular level. Telomere, telomerase and chromosomes control life span. Longer the telomere longer the lifespan. Telomeres get shorter and shorter each time a cell divides. After a certain number of divisions have taken place, the telomeres get so short that no more divisions can occur and the cell degenerates dramatically and dies. When large number of cells undergo this fate, the specific organ suffers, leading to the eventual deterioration and death of the organism. The more cellular divisions possible, the longer the life span, since the differentiated cells in our body (which number 10 million million) are genetically “hard-wired” to replicate only a certain number of times.
Dr. Dean Ornish the famous cardiologist from Sausalito, California, USA is of the opinion that after only three months of making the lifestyle changes described in this book (Spectrum), we found that gene expression in over five hundred genes were beneficially affected – upregulating (“turning on”) disease-preventing genes and downregulating (“turning off”) disease-promoting genes, including oncogenes involved in prostate cancer and breast cancer, as well as turning off genes that promote heart disease, inflammation, and oxidative stress.
Now it is clear that genetic control affects our aging more when we are young and gradually this control weakens as we age and here healthy lifestyle such as no smoking, balanced healthy plant based diet, regular exercise, meditation and spirituality help.
Baltimore Longitudinal Study on Aging (BLSA). The oldest study of investigation on aging feels that disease is not an inevitable by product of aging and genetic, lifestyle and disease processes together affect the rate at which a person ages. Also, a recent survey studying 150 investigations into the effect of religion on health showed significant scientific evidence that prayer and religion protect against cardiovascular diseases, improve recovery from acute illnesses and may even slow the progress of cancer.
Free radicals are unstable and highly active compounds. Oxidation and other chemical reactions involving oxygen produce maximum free radicals. Free radicals damage cells and cause ageing. Free radicals are produced in higher amount when we consume a diet rich in saturated fats and sugar. Other than normal metabolism, some external substances also produce free radicals such as tobacco, alcohol, environmental pollutants, radiation and fatty diet. Human body produces anti oxidant enzymes opposing free radicals. Vitamins C & E, Selenium, Carotenes and flavonoids are good antioxidants.
Following factors are closely related with aging and their use and misuse can cause aging to speed up or slowing. It all depends how you use these factors in your favour.
1. Diet :
Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, famous Franch play writer and actor (1622-1673) known by his stage name Moliere, might have written this, “one should eat to live, not live to eat” in lighter context but it is the reality and main factor for a healthy and long life.
Life expectancy today has reached approximately 79 years in USA. It is a great leap from the 1900’s when it was around 49 years. In India the life expectancy is 68 years for male and 75 years for females. It is due to the better scientific understanding of diseases, diet and exercise. It is of grave concern, that some youths are ageing 3 times faster than normal, as per a recent Israeli study conducted at Hebrew University. The probable reason found was unhealthy lifestyle which includes unhealthy diet, alcohol and drug abuse and changing lifestyle are responsible for younger people getting old at a faster speed, is shown by a recent study.
India features in the “Top 10 obese nations on the planet”, not a particularly good list to be on. One may ask that what is a healthy diet, a healthy diet is one that helps to maintain or improve overall health. A healthy diet provides essential nutrients, fluid, adequate protein, fat, calories, vitamins and minerals. A proper balanced diet with addition to exercise lowers health risks, such as obesity, heart disease, type-2 diabetes, hypertension and cancer.
Studies show that 80 – 90% heart diseases are due to unhealthy diet. As per study published in Lancet, a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and legumes can improve your telomerase level, telomerase lengthens telomeres which increases longevity.
It is well documented by various researches that low calorie plant based diet can slow down the ticking telomere clock. Michael Gregor writes in his best seller book, “How Not To Diet” that it turns out, a more plant based diet may help prevent, treat or reverse every single one of our fifteen leading causes of death. He further mentions in book that “The thought is that if you can slow down the ticking cellular clock, you may be able to slow down the aging process and live longer.
Arjun is a 34 years young man weighs 84 kg with 5’4” height. He tried a lifestyle plan to reduce consumption of calorie and do moderately strenuous exercise, to reduce weight, it was a matter of will power. His weakness was chocolate though dark chocolate in limited amount is good but more will increase risk of ill health. Now he started leading a clean lifestyle except the consumption of chocolates. He was all the time thinking and craving for chocolate, earlier it was not like it but now when he wanted to control, the craving increased. He was following ‘all or none law’ which was difficult for him to maintain so he consulted a psychiatrist who settled his problem by advising a regular meditation and weekly 1/2 bar of chocolate of his choice. This is a real practical problem in following a healthy life style, but there are solutions for every problem. If you can’t succeed take help from doctors and nutritionists.
2. Stress:
Stress is killing, so stress has to be avoided or tackled at any cost to live longer. Stress invites age related diseases at an early age and thus shortens lifespan. Positive thinking, meditation, hope, optimism are tools to deal with stress.
Stress is the main troublemaker of today’s life. Stress is a situation, which produces a negative body response. Though stress is good for the human body if it occurs in small amounts, recurrent heavy stress can lead to psychological problems as well as physical illness. According to Philip T. Hagan, MD, Mayo Clinic, USA, technique like guided imagery, meditation, muscle relaxation and relaxed breathing can help in relaxation. It lowers heart rate, blood pressure and muscle tension.
The relaxation response is a great longevity tool, since deep relaxation promotes greater oxygenation of blood and tissues and it causes the adrenal glands to switch their production from the age-accelerating hormones, adrenaline and cortisol, to life-enhancing DHFA.
Meditation is a safe and simple way to balance a person’s physical, emotional and mental states. It is easy to learn and can be useful for treating stress and pain. It keeps the attention focused o the present. It is neither about reacting to past events or being preoccupied with future places.
It is a scientific fact that meditation slows down the ageing process. Dr. Dean Ornish, Head of Preventive Medicine Research Institute in Sausalito, California, USA, recently published his study in “Lancet Oncology”, recommending lifestyle changes, such as a diet rich in fibre, vegetable, whole grains, legumes and soy products, moderate exercise like walking for half an hour a day and an hour of stress management methods like meditation.
Deep Abdominal Breathing To Beat Stress:
When we are in stress we breathe from the chest and it is shallow breathing. When we breathe from the diaphragm (abdominal), it is deep breathing. Shallow or chest breathing doesn’t utilise 10-15 percent of lung capacity, so there is less oxygen in the blood, and also less vitality and freshness.
•Stand or sit or lie down.
•Inhale deeply from the diaphragm, pushing out the abdomen without moving your chest and count 1, 2, 3, 4 slowly in your mind while inhaling.
•Hold your breath by counting 1 to 16 in your mind.
•Exhale by pushing the abdomen in and not moving the chest and counting from 1 to 8 in your mind.
Repeat it five times.
3. Exercise:
Movement is life. Stillness is death. Move and live long, avoid moving and die soon. Move your body, take a walk, play a game, climb up and down the stairs, play with your children in the park, not necessarily join a gym. Exercise is usually a boring activity but any strenuous physical activity like swimming, outdoor sports, dancing etc., have the same effect as exercise done in the gym, so why not to develop a hobby to reap benefits of exercise. Exercise helps in reducing body’s inflammatory process, thus reduces the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, dementia, Alzheimer’s, colon cancer, metabolic syndromes and osteoporosis etc.
Physically active people suffer significantly lower percentage of heart attacks, about which some studies have indicated upto a 50% drop. Earlier it was thought that vigorous exercises give heart disease (prevention of) benefits, but now the good news is that regular moderate exercise can also give the same benefits. Even moderate exercise such as walking for twenty to thirty minutes per day – and not even that fast or not even all at once – may reduce your risk of premature death from heart disease by 50 percent or more compared to those who are sedentary. Exercise if done regularly can even change the genetic profile of an older person to that of young individual. Six months of muscle training can reduce the muscle weakness developing due to age. It made people to do some works which were difficult before starting the exercise and weight training program National Cancer Institute, USA, reported in 2005 that regular exercise can reduce the risk of colon cancer by 50% and breast cancer by 30 – 40%. These effects can be gained by 30 minutes of moderate regular exercise (5 days a week). Obesity increases risk of cancer and weight loss can reduce the risk and help in longevity. Just ten minutes of walking turns on a gene that decreases the rate of achieving cancer growth.
In 1953, Dr Jerry Morsis, Scottish epidemiologist, for the first time established the link between physical activity and heart disease. He noticed that postmen who delivered mail by bicycle or by foot almost never had heart attacks as opposed to sedentary men who worked on counters or as clerks.
WHO has indicated that lack of exercise contributes to diabetes, heart disease and colon cancer. Reduction in weight even 4-5% can reduce the risk of some diseases significantly.
Regular exercise extends life as per American epidemiologist, Steve Moore, who studied the effects of exercise on more than 65,000 people over the age of 40 years. This study showed that regular exercise increased life by at least 4-5 years. The exercise should be aerobic exercise of moderate or vigourous intensity for 1.25 – 2.5 hours per week. Dr. I Min- Lee, Prof. of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, said that even modest amount of exercise can extend years of your life, but more strenuous exercise has approximately double effect. Regular minimum exercise can also help to give you longevity.
4. Sleep :
Benjamin Franklin’s words, ‘Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise’, have stood the test of time and will remain true forever. Sleep is an essential element for life and definitely for longevity. Sleep improves overall health of your body, be it heart, brain or intestines. It makes your cardiovascular system strong thus keeps hypertension and heart diseases away. Sleep helps body in repair of wears and tears caused by life’s journey.
Sleep is vital to our survival and a large percentage of us have sleep problem and out of this most sleep disorders remain undiagnosed. Sleep improves your health and adds years to your life by improving your physical and cognitive health, it also improves your memory and reduces the level of stress and sleeplessness increases stress and weakens the memory. A sound and deep sleep reduces the inflammation which if chronic can increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes and fast aging. Sound sleep also improves the body energy level and thus improves your athletic performance and also helps kids to score better in their studies as it affects brain’s health. It also helps in controlling your weight as sleeplessness increases hunger and sound sleep controls it. Sleep also helps in release of certain substances which control your appetite and reduce hunger. A sound sleep gives sound health which in turn provides long and healthy life. Sound sleep is one of the main pillars of health and disturbed sleep or insomnia is one of the worst factor affecting health.
Most people sleep for 7 to 8 hours at a stretch. According to American Cancer Society, the best amount of sleep for health and longevity is seven hours. A study about sleep done with 1 million people for six years done by researches from University of California at San Diego School of medicine and the America Cancer Society for 1982 to 1988. Best survival rates were found among those who slept seven hours a night.
Good sleep keep all body organs health including immune system, nervous system and cardiovascular system. Irregular and insufficient sleep can lead to diabetes, heart problems, hypertension and even death.
Mr. Suresh Kumar, a 48 year old media personality, wakes up in the morning feeling tired, as if he has not slept at all. He tends to nap during meetings and conversations. He feels tired and suffers from headaches throughout the day. Sometimes, he wakes up at midnight and cannot go back to sleep again. He was overweight (100 kg). He started practicing diet and exercise regimen to reduce his weight which he has done and is now sleeping better though his weight is still 96 kg.
5. Friends and family:
Isolation or loneliness kills and family and friendship rejuvenate and give you extra years, is now explained on the basis of several research studies. Researches have proved that social activity improves the functioning of immune system where as isolation weakens it by increasing the stress and stress hormones. Social activity, mingling with friends and family members help solving your problems and reducing the stress. In most of our big cities, in spite of plenty of people, a lot of persons lead isolated lives due to stress and anxiety. Sally Brown writes, “Being sociable boosts your immune system, and so does having a good relationship with your other half.”
Aristotle was right when he said – He who is unable to live in society or who has no need because he is sufficient for himself, must be a beast or God.
Social involvement, especially with your partner, family and close friends definitely makes you less stressed and more relieved. The isolation leads to stress, suffering and illness. In other words, altruism, compassion, and forgiveness are in our best self-interest, for they help to free us from our limitations and empower us. In other words, opening your heart prolongs your life and reverse shortens it. Communication with partner is utmost important for a healthy relationship and peaceful, happy and long life.
Friends and relatives can add years to your life and you can also prolong their lives. Lynne C Giles, doctoral researcher and lead author of a study conducted at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, has found that the presence of older relatives and friends in some way seems to be a key factor in longevity. The study also indicated that people with the largest number of friends survive longest..
Seema is living with her husband in Gurgaon, both are working in MNCs and earning good salaries. Fourteen years back, they got married after 2 years of courtship. They were a happy couple, but now their happiness has vanished. Though they are living under same roof with two school going children, but due to their busy careers, lack of personal time, travelling and burden of taking care of children and home have taken a toll on their relationship. They are daily fighting a lot over trivial matters and almost living isolated. There is no support for each other and the companionship has vanished. There is also a type of isolation and loneliness inspite of living with family. It is affecting the growth and behavior of their children. If it continues, will affect everybody’s health in the family. They have to sit together and think what they want, before it is too late.
6. Spirituality:
Blaise Pascal, French Mathematician gave us the theory, ’Pascal’s No Lose Philosophy’, which says,’ Believe in God, if you are right, you stand to gain eternal bliss and if you are wrong it won’t make any difference.’ More and more people have started believing in God and an increasing number openly acknowledge it. Surprisingly even Doctors are turning towards spirituality and religion. A recent survey carried out by University of Chicago, has revealed that upto 76 percent of Doctors believe in God and 45 percent feel that religious conviction influences their medical practice.
Religion, spirituality and health are now part of curriculum of more than half of medical schools in the US. In November 2005, North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences arranged a lecture titled,’ Faith, prayer and miracles: The role of spirituality in the modern practice of medicine.’ In December 2005 Harvard Medical School arranged a CME course on ‘Spirituality and Healing in Medicine’. These trends show the emergence of research on spirituality and health in a big way. ‘Neurotheology’, a new field, studies the neurobiological basis of religion and spirituality.
Herbert Benson, Physician at Harvard Medical School writes that faith in God has health boosting effects. Dr. Harold Koenig, Director of Duke Centre of Spirituality, tells us that more than half of the scientific papers on topic of religion, spirituality and health show it is advantageous to be religiously active. Paul Mueller and his colleagues at Mayo Clinic wrote, ‘A majority of studies have found that religious involvement and spirituality are associated with better health outcomes.’ Internal Medicine Specialist at Georgetown University, Dr. Dale Mathews, states that 80 percent of published studies report a positive association between religious commitment and better health.
The East has a lot to teach the West about Spirituality just as the West has a lot to teach the East about material matters. In other words while the West sees Science in God, East sees God in Science. However both East and West have to live together complementing each other’s existence. Some believe that the idea of God is necessary for us to stay on the right path.
Ageing is a mental process. The physical aspects of body are controlled by the brain and if one provides a healthy diet to the body and soul, with adequate periods of rest and rejuvenation, it can definitely slow down the process of ageing. ‘Intense Yoga’ and ‘Intense Meditation’ both require for deep focus, also can contribute to one’s health and slowing of the ageing process. According to a report in Newsweek Magazine (17.11.2003), a poll found that 84% Americans believe in the positive effects of praying for patients who are recovering from various illnesses.
It has also been found in studies conducted by Dr. Andrew Newberg, MD, Neurologist at the University of Pennsylvania, USA, that spirituality promotes longevity and church goers live longer than those who don’t attend mass.
Source: https://www.speakingtree.in/blog/how-to-apply-break-on-aging-to-live-long
Disclaimer: All information, data and material has been sourced from multiple authors and is for general information and educational purposes only and are not intended to replace the advice of your treating doctor.
The views and nutritional advice expressed are not intended to be a substitute for conventional medical service. If you have a severe medical condition or health concern, see your physician.
