SENIOR WELL-BEING

{ SENIOR WELL-BEING } HAVE SCIENTISTS DISCOVERED...

BY CATHLEEN FAVARO

A Fountain Of Youth?

Who doesn’t love to hear “You look amazing!” or “You can’t be that age!”? My personal favorite is: “You look far too young to be a grandmother!” You know what’s even better? Not feeling your age! When you are living a pain free and active life doing what you want when you want is fabulous. As we know though, aging means losing strength, elasticity, and energy. Everything we are exposed to in our environment and buildup of processed foods keeps compiling more and more free radicals that are attacking our cells. This is called oxidative stress and as it continues to build, we continue to age. We become weaker, wrinklie, and lack the energy we once had. Some of us may be more aware of the process and try including more and more antioxidants that work on “gobbling up” those free radicals, but there’s only so much we can eat in a day.

You may not know that scientists have been researching aging and how to slow the process for decades. They may not find “The Fountain of Youth” but keys to unlock the aging process & help people live longer, healthier, more productive lives. Last year Tony Robbins released a book titled “LIFE FORCE” that went in depth about some easily accessible as well as more extreme options that have been trialed or being used to turn back the hands of time.

Nutrigenomics And You

As science works to help us age better new terms have been coined and nutrigenomics is one of my favorites. Nutrigenomics focuses on how food & nutrients interact with our genes. We all have different genes, so some is different for all of us. Different people are predisposed genetically for certain diseases and illnesses than others. Focusing on the healing properties of foods, vitamins, and supplements help people reduce their risk for disease, improve their mood and gut health, and even help their eyes. That’s right. In my home, we use products from a company called Lifevantage. Lifevantage may be one of the best kept secrets on the market. Being a cancer survivor, I started using a tri-synergizer (3 products that help repair our cells to address that pesky oxidative stress issue I mentioned).

A couple years ago my father was diagnosed with macular degeneration. His eye doctor prescribed him folic acid & recommended an eye vitamin from Amazon. Then, Lifevantage developed an eye supplement called ICBright (catch that? I See Bright? Clever, huh?) I compared the ingredients in the two and found the ICBright was even better, so armed with knowledge and ingredients, we asked the doctor. To my surprise, the doctor already knew about the Lifevantage ICBright and agreed it was a better supplement than the one he had recommended…. and they are the same price! This is a perfect example of nutrigenomics. According to my father’s doctor, these supplements appear to help to slow the progression of the type of macular degeneration he has. Honestly, even if it’s not helping there is nothing bad in them to hurt and he BELIEVES it’s working so although no natural products; vitamins and supplements can make claims to heal or help according to the US FDA, we all can agree with the old adage, “You are what you eat.” Before medications, people only had certain springs of water, foods, and herbs that were accessible to them and pray for good genes.

Finding Youth At All Ages

There are a few area to consider to make yourself feel and look younger. They will be different for each of us depending on our family and lifestyle background. They are immune health, gut health, energy, generalized wellness, weight management, and skin/hair care. Immune health has been at the forefront of most peoples minds most recently due to the pandemic. My personal fear is some people have potentially damaged a little of their own immune system by overusing antibacterial everything. The hand sanitizers and hyper-cleaning kills off good and bad bacteria. We all have some good bacteria on our skin to help us ward off bad bacteria and the same is said for our gut health. There are essential oils like THIEVES from Young Living oils and ON GUARD from doTerra oils that help our immune system naturally. Washing our hands with basic soap and water is ideal instead of antibacterial soap or hand sanitizers. There are also multiple supplements and vitamins like C, D3, and zinc to support your immune health. Foods such as citrus fruits, broccoli, ginger, garlic, red bell peppers, and spinach are good for your immunity.

“Who doesn’t love to hear “You look amazing!” or “You can’t be that age!”? My personal favorite is: “You look far too young to be a grandmother!”

Gut health is a huge topic in the US because our diet does not support a healthy gut. The amount of gluten, alcohol, sugar, and processed foods as well as GMOs and pesticides literally thin the barrier between our gut (intestine) and the rest of our bodies creating leaking of the bad stuff and making us all feel sluggish and have inflammation. I am not telling everyone they need to go gluten free, never touch a drop of alcohol, and eat only organic (although it wouldn’t hurt) but to be proactive and consider the quantities that we are putting into our bodies. Again, based on your own experiences, lifestyle, and genes you can seek a supplement or shake help heal your gut. You can also look at your diet and include a few more Mediterranean diet options to your diet. Foods such as ginger, oats, apples, flaxseed, legumes, prebiotic & probiotics, mushrooms, and grains can be good start. Your doctor or local nutritionist can help you if you are concerned about your gut and how this may be impacting you personally.

Energy is something we all want more of, isn’t it? I watch my 5- & 7-year-old grandchildren run and play all day long and wish I could harness some of that for myself. Why is that kind of energy provided to kids when I could be so productive if I have a percentage of that in a day? However, healing your gut, eating more antioxidants, practicing wellness principles can all improve your energy level, can’t it? Foods like bananas, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, spinach, avocado, eggs, lentils, fruits, green tea, berries, dark chocolate, and Omega-3s like salmon are all energy supporting foods. In the end, those things can also help with weight management. I have my own weight problems and sometimes it can be food and drink related, but overall, it is not. I also believe there are things happening with my hormones and how my body controls its own metabolism. Not every overweight person is a glutton as portrayed on TV. If this sounds like you as well, I encourage you to seek a doctor that does not simply recommend gastric surgery but an endocrinologist willing to work through the process with you. Our bodies work on a hormonal web that all interact together and hormones certain change as we age. Don’t just accept that it is what it is and seek help. It may be easier said than done but could be well worth it in the end.

Skin & Hair Care

Skin and Hair Care is the most obvious to feel you look younger, but I saved it for last because your body is more important. Food wise, you are seeing a trend throughout this article, I am sure. Avocados, broccoli, ginseng, berries, red bell peppers, edamame, dark chocolate, salmon, pomegranates, citrus fruits, and green tea are a sample of great nourishment for your body, skin, and hair. Elasticity of the skin has a lot to do with collagen breakdown as we age and there is a plethora of collagen supplements on the market as well as other anti-aging products. Anti-aging is a $5 Billion industry from peels to oils and supplements to creams. I personally love the liquid collagen supplement I drink daily from Lifevantage. I also have a dear friend who has found amazing results with her naturally curly hair from Audere, a new hair care line this year. Whatever you feel works best for you from Arbonne to Wella if you like it, stick with it. Here is my one caveat. Look at the ingredients. Try to stay in the more natural. The excessive use of chemicals, colors, and fragrances added to products continues to build up that toxic portfolio of free radicals that your body is trying to fight off. Your thyroid gland (metabolism) is very sensitive to these chemicals.

Environment and Activity If you follow me, you’ve heard this before and will again. Wellness is found in getting outside with nature and taking a walk. Fresh air, meditation, getting as much sunshine as you can get (not always easy as we come upon winter in NY) and keeping your body in motion is a huge component to generalized wellness, reducing blood pressure, improving mood, and maintaining brain health. See you next time!

Join me at www.seniorwellbeingsolutions. com for blogs, emails, to learn more about Lifevantage, and a new subscription service that highlights a wellness topic every month with fun activities, recipes, and more! You can leave me messages and subscribe to emails, newsletters, or the monthly subscription and more! You can also subscribe to my YouTube station www.youtube.com/@ planforwellness-aging-coach