Digestmap - Secrets of longevity

Secrets of longevity

(from What Doctors Don't Tell You)

What Doctors Don't Tell You is the complete review of health problems and safer, proven ways of treating them. WDDTY is a monthly journal - described as the best in the world - it's a research database, and it's a portal for you to share your health experiences. We made a digest of it’s longevity advices for you.

10 tips for a healthy lifestyle

1. Choose a reasonably vigorous exercise programme you love and stick with it regularly.
Every study of ageing shows that the more active you are, the less likely you are to die from all causes, including heart attacks and cancer. Twenty minutes of low impact, weight bearing exercise three to four times a week is best for your bones. This can include walking, rebounding, cycling, using a Stairmaster or low impact aerobics. Staying trim with a lean body mass is also linked with lower overall mortality. Exercise has also been shown to keep your mind sharp and improve mental health, and help avoid depression (WDDTY vol 9 no 1).
2. Challenging work
Try not to settle for anything less than challenging work or an activity that you love that makes your 'heart sing" as US naturopaths Judyth and Robert Ullman put it and do it with gusto. Again, studies indicate that people at peace with their lives and life's work live longer than those who are warring with their world or don't keep their minds active (WDDTY vol 9 no 1).
3. Try to be of service to others, on or off the job.
The Ullmans recently wrote that they consider loving and being of service to others the highest priority. (Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients, July 1997).
4. Reduce the number of poisons you put in your body.
Smoking, drinking, salty processed foods, all have indesputable detrimental effects on your health and your life. Caffeine and tannin are perhaps the main culprits in benign breast disease, and are also linked with joint problems.
5. Make your home a sanctuary and refuge.
Fill your environment only with objects, friends and family and animals that are supportive. Dr William Rea suggests that, if at all possible, live with some land around you, even in the form of a small town garden. (If possible, also live detached from your neighbours, so that you don't take on their EMFs and other pollutants.) If this is not possible, be sure to spend time in nature as much as you can. Many clinical ecologists like Dr Rea find that patients have too low levels of oxygen the effect of living in a polluted, congested, urban world.

6. Be connected with others and yourself.
Only half of all heart disease is called by a sedentary lifestyle and high fat diet. The other half appears to be caused by isolation from other people and our own feelings. A Finnish study has shown that those who were lonely and isolated socially were two to three times more likely to die from heart disease and other causes than those who felt connected to others. Conversely, studies of populations show that social networks and social support protect people against heart disease regardless of whether they smoke or suffer from high blood pressure (Am J Epidemiol, 1983; 117: 384-96). Making friends, expressing your feelings even owning a pet could prove a lifesaver (PROOF! vol 1 no 1).
7. Cultivate some sort of spiritual connection, whether with a god or a less directed religious entity.
Copious evidence shows that prayer actually has positive effect upon the body, whether you are the one doing the praying or are being prayed for (PROOF! vol 1 no 1). A study of centenarians found that faith in God was one common element to which they attributed their longevity (WDDTY vol 9 no 1).
8. Engage in regular relaxation techniques, particularly those which calm the mind as well as the body.
The latest evidence shows that techniques like yoga, Transcendental Meditation and other disciplines likely to put you in touch with your own spirituality, in addition to providing relaxation, work better than stress management and other techniques which solely concentrate on relaxing the body (PROOF! vol 1 no 1).
9. Don't hold grudges: cultivate a sense of forgiveness, of your enemies, your family, your parents.
Most importantly, forgive and love yourself. Get rid of unfinished emotional business in your life. Again the evidence shows that psychological and emotional health is an important predictor of longevity (WDDTY vol 9 no 1).
10. Take responsibility for your own health.
Taking responsibility for every decision in your health care means that you are less likely to be a victim of your doctor's decision. You also derive the psychological benefit of staying in charge again, an important predictor of mental and physical health (WDDTY, the book).

DHEA Facts

Many hormonal changes take place with ageing, but none is as marked as what happens to DHEA levels. These start to fall from as early as age 30, and really accelerate after 60 so that, by age 70, the average person retains only 20 per cent of what he had in his youth. By age 80, this will have dropped even further to only 10 per cent.
DHEA loss in men has been likened to the menopause in women, which also involves substantial losses of specific female hormones. Although the hormone loss is less dramatic in men than in women, could it nevertheless be the cause of a so-called male menopause? Certainly, lower levels of DHEA are believed to be responsible for the loss of bone and muscle strength, a reduced sex drive, osteoporosis (bone-thinning), increased abdominal fat, incontinence, a decline in mental functioning, depression and a reduced quality of life (Minerva Ginecol, 2006; 58: 153–70).

What is DHEA?

Dehydroepiandrosterone is the most abundant hormone in the body. It is a natural steroid hormone from which the body makes its male and female sex hormones. It is mostly produced by the adrenal glands although, in men, about 25 per cent of it is made in the testes. DHEA can cross the blood–brain barrier, and so may affect brain cells. Natural DHEA levels are highest in the morning.
Exercise is a good way to naturally raise DHEA levels in the body (J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci, 2002; 57: B158–65), whereas certain prescription drugs, such as insulin, corticosteroids, opiates and danazol, can lower them.
Most of the positive clinical trials with DHEA used a dosage of 50 mg/day, rising to as much as 450 mg/day. However, some practitioners use far less than this, having found that, in practice, patients may get better on as little as 10 mg/day.
DHEA is widely available without a prescription, causing doctors to voice fears as to its safety, although the research thus far has found no significant side-effects.
Nevertheless, there is a theoretical concern that DHEA may, in some circumstances, be carcinogenic. Because the hormone raises estrogen and testosterone levels, anyone with a history of breast or prostate cancer is advised not to take it (Ann NY Acad Sci, 2004; 1028: 216–32)

Weight gain: Putting on the pounds can prolong your life as you get older

The body mass index (BMI) is one of the crudest measurements of our health and longevity. It’s been found wanting in many a study, and researchers at UCI (University of California Irvine) have confirmed this with the discovery that elderly people who are overweight according to their BMI reading actually live longer.
The researchers compared BMI and mortality rates for more than 13,000 subjects over the age of 80 who were living in a retirement community. Data was collected over a three-year period, and again for another year one year later.
Those whose BMI readings put them in the ‘overweight’ category lived longer than those in the ‘normal’ scale.
The ideal progression seems to be within the ‘normal’ scale in your younger years before slowly putting on more weight as you age. The research found that those who were overweight, or even obese, in the early 20s didn’t live as long as those who were slimmer.

Vitamin D Supplements: They may help you live longer

Vitamin D is a bit of a Cinderella in the world of supplements – and yet it is the one that could help you live longer.
People who regularly take a vitamin D supplement increase their longevity by 7 per cent, researchers have discovered.
And the reason could be because the vitamin offers natural protection against most cancers, and stops cancer cells from proliferating. It may also boost the immune system and the function of the blood vessels.
Even one tablet a day, with a potency of 600 IUs, offers protection against a range of diseases, including cancer and heart disease.
The importance of vitamin D supplementation has been made by researchers from France’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, and the European Institute of Oncology. They analyzed 18 studies, which involved 57,311 participants, and those who regularly took a standard vitamin D vitamin every day had a 7 per cent lower risk of death than those who did not.
Vitamin D can be found in milk and yoghurt, eggs, fatty fish and yeast, and the body naturally produces it when exposed to sunlight. But researchers say it is “a great idea” to increase your intake by supplementing.

It's Never Too Late: Adopt a healthier lifestyle when you’re 60, and you’ll still live longer

It’s never too late to enjoy the benefits of a healthier lifestyle. You can still live longer if you begin a healthier regime when you’re 60, a new study has discovered.
In just four years, you can reduce your risk of heart disease – and put years on your life expectancy.
The great news is that the changes are simple and achievable: just eat five portions of fruit and vegetables every day, exercise moderately for two-and-a-half hours a week – that’s just 20 minutes a day – don’t smoke, and keep your BMI (body mass index) below 30.
Researchers from the Medical University of South Carolina tested the theory on around 16,000 people aged between 45 and 64, who were monitored for 10 years. Those who adopted the four lifestyle changes saw an average of a 35 per cent reduction in heart disease, and a 40 per cent improvement in life expectancy. Even those who adopted three of the four recommendations also improved their life expectancy.

Based on:

Secrets of longevity from What Doctors Don't Tell You

Category: Health, New science