Age Without "Ageing"

"If age is all in the mind, how do we keep it from creeping down into our body?"

I just recently turned 55! Wow I'm getting older and older as time passes so quickly and there's nothing I can do about that. None of us can slow down time! However, what we can do is slow down the effects of aging. There are things we can do to make the inevitable ageing process more gracious because, luckily, life has an amazing ability to adjust to demands! If you stay active your muscles and your mind stay youthful for much longer! This is also true on how we nourish ourselves, we can feed our bodies into staying younger for longer.

"clean and Natural foods are nature's Anti Ageing Remedies"

If "age is all in the mind" then the answer to how we keep it from creeping into our body can be found in clean, honest and natural foods that are super charged with powerful nutrients. They will definitely help delay and even relieve symptoms of some of the effects of ageing! Here are my top seven favourite foods that I eat regularly to help me with the ageing process, externally as well as internally!

Top 6 Foods That Help To Age Without "Ageing"!

Pulses

Ageing for women begins due to the hormonal changes that occur during menopause. Unfortunately, we cannot stop the menopause, but we can help ease some of the biological ageing caused by the oestrogen hormonal shift through eating foods rich in plant compounds known as phytoestrogens found in pulses. These phytoestrogens mimic some of the biological activities of the female hormone oestrogen. Two such phytoestrogens, feinstein and daidzein are found in the chickpeas, edamame beans and lentils, they are natures potent oestrogens. Feinstein and daidzein compounds will greatly help reduce some of the symptoms of menopause and are particularly effective for reducing hot flushes. So, bring on the hummus, eat up the Dahl and snack on edamame beans!

Nuts

Vitamin E is a brilliant anti ageing food and is abundant in most nuts, especially almonds. it helps retain moisture in the skin, protects against sun damage and repairs skin tissue, all of which will keep the skin from looking less wrinkled. But its not just our outward appearance that almonds help with, they have also been found to help with memory loss in older age!

Another powerful little nut is the walnut! It contains very high amounts of anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids which strengthens the skin cell membranes and preserves its natural oil barrier, promoting a beautiful glowing and youthful complexion. Walnuts have also been linked to reduced risk of developing heart disease. Best way to include a variety of nuts into your diet is to stock your cupboards with different types of plain, unsalted, unflavoured nuts and munch on them, as a snack and/or sprinkle on top of salads or over a bowl of porridge at breakfast.

Papaya

An understated superfood, the papaya is bursting with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals that keep the skin from losing it's elasticity too quickly. The anti-inflammatory compound, papain found in the papaya has also been found to relieve many of the symptoms associated with arthritis and osteoporosis.

The rich vitamin C content improves the immune system and the fibre content of papayas not only prevent constipation but promote good digestion. Its pretty powerful stuff too when it comes to menstrual issues especially those women who are at the beginning of menopause as papaya stimulates the production of oestrogen and helps balance the hormonal shift.

Even the papaya seeds are good for us as they contain antibacterial properties that can prevent kidney failure, clean the liver and flush out toxins from within the body. This win-win food is so easy to include into your every day diet as it is delicious for breakfast or even desert. Just cut the fruit in half and eat the flesh raw with fresh lime generously squeezed all over it.

Salmon

Calcium and Vitamin D are found naturally in salmon, they are two essential nutrients that keep our bones strong. Our bones are in a constant state of turnover, breaking down old bone cells and rebuilding new ones, therefore bone health should be a priority because as we age bone density declines for women and men.

Over a life time, women can lose about half of their trabecular bone, the soft spongy middle bit but it doesn't stop there for women, we also lose 30% of the denser tissue that covers the bones post menopause with most of the loss occurring 10 years after. However, men too will also lose about 0.5% of their bone density after 50! Therefore the best source of calcium is found in the diet, and when it comes to vitamin D, if the sun is not shining, you can find it in the diet too. Maximise on your intake by including salmon every week and accompany it with green leafy vegetables.

GARLIC

This little powerhouse bulb is packed with sulphur, taurine and lipid acid that increase collagen production and support damaged collagen fibres in both the skin and joints. Collagen is a protein found in our skin, hair, nails and connective tissue that helps with strength, firmness and elasticity. As we age collagen production decreases leading to wrinkles, sagging skin and weak hair and nails.

Other health benefits of garlic include reducing age-related chronic illnesses, caused by DNA mutations from free radical damage. If the damage is left untreated, the DNA mutants replicate and develop disease. Therefore, the powerful compounds in garlic compensate for this extra damage, and help prevent cancer, heart disease, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.

Water

Drinking water is an absolute no matter what age, but it is especially important to stay properly hydrated as we age because we lose more water than when we were younger. At birth we are more than 70% water, but as we reach middle age the proportion of total body fluids to body weight changes to about 60% in men and 52% in women: men have greater muscle mass, (which hold more water), than women who tend to have more body fat, (which hold less water!). After 60 years old the proportion can reduce to as low as 52% in men and 46% in women if muscle is lost and more fat is gained!

Water is needed to support proper kidney function and unfortunately as we age the ability for our kidneys to remove toxins from the blood decreases, therefore we need to drink even more water for the kidneys to do their job efficiently. To exasperate the situation the 'thirst' mechanism in the hypothalamus, located in the brain, changes as we age!

The hypothalamus is important for receiving information from blood vessels to monitor volume and pressure as well as concentrations of sodium. Unfortunately the mechanisms involved become faulty and as a consequence we miss the signals to feel thirsty! Ensure that you are constantly drinking fresh filtered water throughout the day even if you don't feel thirsty!

Final Word

With the right lifestyle and balanced nutrition, it may be possible to delay the effects of ageing and fight back against age related diseases.. Clean and natural foods are nature's anti ageing remedies that really can make it possible to live not only a healthier life but also age without “ageing’.

References

• Argyropoulou, A., Aligiannis, N., Trougakos, I. P., & Skaltsounis, A. L. (2013). Natural compounds with anti-ageing activity. Natural product reports, 30(11), 1412-1437.

• Bacalini, M. G., Friso, S., Olivieri, F., Pirazzini, C., Giuliani, C., Capri, M., ... & Garagnani, P. (2014). Present and future of anti-ageing epigenetic diets. Mechanisms of ageing and development, 136, 101-115.

• Birrell, M. A., McCluskie, K., Wong, S., Donnelly, L. E., Barnes, P. J., & Belvisi, M. G. (2005). Resveratrol, an extract of red wine, inhibits lipopolysaccharide induced airway neutrophilia and inflammatory mediators through an NF-κB-independent mechanism. The FASEB journal, 19(7), 840-841.

• Lord, J. M., Butcher, S., Killampali, V., Lascelles, D., & Salmon, M. (2001). Neutrophil ageing and immunesenescence. Mechanisms of ageing and development, 122(14), 1521-1535.

• Mozaffari-Khosravi, H., Hesabgar, H. A. S., Owlia, M. B., Hadinedoushan, H., Barzegar, K., & Fllahzadeh, M. H. (2012). The effect of garlic tablet on pro-inflammatory cytokines in postmenopausal osteoporotic women: a randomized controlled clinical trial. Journal of dietary supplements, 9(4), 262-271.

• Opie, L. H., & Lecour, S. (2007). The red wine hypothesis: from concepts to protective signalling molecules. European heart journal, 28(14), 1683-1693.

• Somwanshi, S. B., Gaikwad, V. M., Dhamak, K. B., & Gaware, V. M. (2017). WOMEN‟ S HEALTH ISSUE: A BRIEF OVERVIEW ON IRREGULARITIES IN MENSTRUATION.

• Virgili, F., D'Amicis, A., & Ferro-Luzzi, A. (1992). Body composition and body hydration in old age estimated by means of skinfold thickness and deuterium dilution. Annals of human biology, 19(1), 57-66.