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5 Things To Move Closer To The Fountain Of Youth

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The never-ending search for the Fountain of Youth may be as old as humanity… dating back to when we first emerged on our planet.

But why are we so preoccupied with holding on to our youth? Is it the decline of influence and power that accompanies aging? Or is it the discomfort we feel about the unknown territory ahead?

Regardless of the reason, both men and women look for ways to hold on to their youth, looking for remedies to make they look and feel younger. Sadly, many choose medical interventions when they could reach for less invasive and healthier alternatives.

While not as dramatic as procedures, there are many natural alternatives to help you look and feel younger. You don’t need to go for Botox injections or more invasive procedures like liposuction or even a facelift.

Here are five gentler ways to help you look and feel younger than you really are. Work toward integrating them into your daily routine and see for yourself what a difference they can make.

#1 – Regular Exercise

Few things are more beneficial to your overall health than regular exercise. Pick an activity you enjoy and can commit to for the long run. Regardless of the exercise you choose, moving your bones can “roll-back” years from your body and mind.

Exercise increases blood flow to every part of your body. It will keep you strong and flexible and your mind alert and sharp. Commit to regular exercise and prepare to be amazed by the results.

#2 – Manage Your Stress

Some degree of stress is a normal part of life. In a way, you might even say stress is positive; it’s healthy. It keeps you functioning at your best, helps you grow and reach for new heights.

But of course, that’s not the kind of stress we’re talking about; we’re concerned with negative stress. It’s the stress that works against you and over time will take a toll on your health.

Whatever the cause of stress in your life, don’t allow it to control you. Take steps to manage and reduce stress to a reasonable level.

You can do that in a number of ways. Engaging in ongoing exercise is your first step in controlling stress in your life. Additionally, consider taking up stress-busting activities like meditation, hypnosis, Tai Qi, Qi Gong, Yoga… to name a few.

And of course, if at all possible, go after the source of stress and get rid of it.

#3 – Improve Your Sleep

Most of us take sleep for granted until there is a problem. That’s when we realize how important it is.

When you’re younger, it’s much easier to cheat sleep and get away with it. But as you get older, the lack of sleep catches up with you; you look and feel tired and sprout bags below your eyes.

But when you get enough quality sleep, your face won’t show as many lines, and your eyes won’t be as puffy. As a bonus, getting proper rest has you feeling and functioning at your best.

So, if you’re dealing with interruptions in your sleep, start by tightening up your evening routine. Stop watching TV or stop looking at your phone or iPad one to two hours before turning off your lights.

Also, try to go to bed around the same time each night. While this may not always be possible, try to stick to a window of time you go to sleep each night.

Additionally, try drinking a cup of herbal tea or taking a supplement to help you get better sleep.

#4 – Improve Your Diet

Here’s a famous quote: “You are what you eat.” In other words, if the food you eat is of low quality, don’t expect to feel great or stay in top form.

Also, our metabolism slows down as we get older, making it easy to put on too much weight. Eating better quality food and less junk food helps you keep your weight on track and your body healthy.

Make it a point to eat as fresh as you can… fresh vegetables and fruits, avoiding processed foods. If possible, eat organic. Stay away from sugar, too much caffeine, and avoid refined foods.

By making these adjustments, you’re off to a good start, keeping your body healthy and your mind sharp.

#5 – Ditch Bad Habits

If you smoke… stop. Note, it’s not smoke less, but it is “stop smoking!”

It’s bad for you no matter how you look at it. Smoking ages your body, giving you a leathered look. Never mind what it’s doing to your lungs or the rest of your body.

If you drink too much alcohol, cut down on the amount you drink.

While there may be some health benefits to drinking alcohol, they are lost when consuming too much. Drinking too much alcohol can damage the liver, negatively impact the brain, decrease immunity, lead to malnutrition, and decrease overall health.

If you drink too much, and you know if you do, cut down or stop altogether.

In Summary

Implementing the suggestions above will help you look and feel younger. But here’s one more thing you can do…

Improve your outlook and your attitude!

Try to adopt and then maintain a positive outlook and attitude. Take responsibility for your actions and your life. Do your best to greet life with open arms, ready to learn and grow.

When you change your attitude, not only do you impact the people around you, but you also change how you respond, and how you feel about yourself.

 

What’s A Simple Exercise For Flabby Arms?

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As we women age we get presented with all sorts of “opportunities” … almost daily.

  • opportunities to change our diet, so we’ll lose a few pounds, nourish our aging brain and stay healthier
  • opportunities to tweak our exercise routine because it will help us lose a few pounds, stay healthier and look better
  • opportunities to try creams and lotions to make our skin feel and look better
  • and of course, opportunities to use surgical procedures to help us look and feel younger

Like I said, no shortage of opportunities.Plenty of things to do and try as we get older.

But do we really need all that help, just because we’re getting older?

After all, getting older and aging IS a natural process everyone will be going through at some point.

Well, I guess the answer to that question depends on your point of view and really is a personal matter.

For some women, getting older, grayer and a bit rounder, is not a big deal. They’re ready and prepared for it and certainly don’t lose much sleep over it.

For other women, the exact some events seem to trigger “states of crisis”. They obsess over getting gray, having more wrinkles and accumulating even more fat in certain areas of their body.

And that’s OK. After all, we’re all different and with our own opinions and preferences.

What doesn’t bother you might just really get under my skin and what gets to my best friend might just roll right off me.

But regardless how you feel about this “aging thing”, you may be bothered by some of our seemingly shared trouble spots. These are areas of the body many of us have struggled with and continue to struggle with.

Can you guess what I’m talking at? [Read more…] about What’s A Simple Exercise For Flabby Arms?

Incontinence: The Taboo Subject

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Nothing slashes a woman’s confidence and self esteem more than this. It’s time to take it out of the closet, discuss it, and find out what you can do.

Urinary incontinence or loss of bladder control. It’s not at all uncommon and no one really wants to talk about it.

Seeing the television commercials is a big step, yet talking about it remains something that might be whispered about behind closed doors. [Read more…] about Incontinence: The Taboo Subject

Women and Heart Disease

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One of the questions I still hear in my practice is, “Why do I need to be concerned with my heart? Women don’t get heart disease like men”.  So, let’s talk about that for a moment.

The truth is heart disease is the #1 cause of death in women over the age of 50. About one in four women dies of heart disease. And the older we get, the more likely we will suffer from heart disease. While both men and women can suffer from heart attacks, we as women are more likely to die from them.

The good news is, most heart disease (and Type II Diabetes) is preventable and that’s what I try to focus on with my patients.  This is good news as more and more people are interested in how to prevent disease so they can live long healthy lives (not to mention, reduce their health care expenditures!). [Read more…] about Women and Heart Disease

Smoking And Obesity ‘Age People’

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ObesityThis shouldn’t come to news to any us… excess weight and smoking are significant risks for many illnesses. Being overweight and a smoker will make you age faster in more ways than one.

You can read the findings below or go to BBC NEWS | Health | Smoking and obesity ‘age people’

Being overweight and a smoker makes a person biologically older
than slim non-smokers of the same birth age, UK and US researchers
have found.

Smoking accelerated the ageing of key pieces of a person’s DNA by about
4.6 years. For obesity it was nine years. These genetic codes are important for regulating cell division and have been linked to age-related diseases.

The study in the Lancet was based on 1,122 twins from a database held by St Thomas’ Hospital in London. The researchers looked at telomeres – strips of DNA that cap the end of chromosomes and appear to protect and stabilise them. Telomeres shorten each time a cell divides, until there is nothing left, making cell division less reliable and increasing the risk of disorders. This happens naturally with ageing.

Accelerated ageing

Both smoking and obesity are important risk factors for many age-related diseases, therefore Professor Tim Spector and colleagues set out to see whether they might accelerate telomere shortening. Among the study sample, all women aged 18-76, 119 were clinically obese, 203 were current smokers and 369 were ex-smokers.

By analysing blood samples for DNA the researchers found telomere length decreased steadily with age, as expected. However, the telomeres of the obese women and smokers were far shorter than those of lean women and those who had never smoked of the same age. Each pack year – the number of cigarette packs smoked per day multiplied by the number of years smoking – was equivalent to a loss of an additional 18% on top of the average annual shortening of telomeres. A woman who had smoked a pack per day for 40 years accelerated her ageing by 7.4 years, according to telomere length.

Chromosomal clock

Professor Spector, from the twin research unit at St Thomas’ Hospital, said: “What you are seeing here is that the entire body is ageing from smoking, not just your heart or your lungs. So you are accelerating your whole chromosomal clock by this activity which is an important message for younger people to think about. People would probably think twice if they knew that at every age they were five or seven years older than their contemporaries biologically because that has influences on their skin, brain and bones.”

Tobacco smoke contains poisons. The research suggests that these poisons may affect cells at one of the most fundamental levels. Excess fat is believed to disrupt the chemical proposition of the body in a negative way. Such stressors can damage the body. Dr Lorna Layward, research manager at Help the Aged, said the work supported what we already know about smoking and obesity being extremely damaging to health.

“While the research is not conclusive, we should take heed of the alarm bells. Most over 65s are not getting enough exercise which has massive implications aside from obesity, such as declining strength and mobility.

Giving up smoking is the biggest thing you can do reduce your chances of developing coronary heart disease. “In today’s fast-paced life, many of us say we don’t have time to exercise or eat healthily, but unless we change our ways we will soon have to find time to cope with ill health.”

Source: BBC Health