24 Mar Aging – genetics or choice?

Although growing older can make you more vulnerable to disease, it is not an illness that we have to live with because we get older. Cell division is a complicated structural phenomenon and with aging it can have a detrimental effect on how our bodies function. The process of new cell growth and fragmentation slows down with age. We see that through basic examples where it takes an older individual more time to heal a wound when compare to a much younger person. Aging can often be described as a process in which there is no longer enough new cells to replace the ones that died or suffered damage. Several studies have shown that when cells stop dividing, they can release damaging proteins into the body further contributing to an aging process. However, other researchers have pointed out to the fact that it is our lifestyle that has more of an effect on the aging process rather than genetics. So which one is it, our chosen lifestyle or our unchosen genes?

The free radical theory of aging has been the subject of much research over the past few decades and has been gaining increasing acceptance since Dr.Harman first introduces the theory. The free radical theory of aging states that organisms age due to the fact that cells accumulate free radicals over the lifespan. With an exception of few, these free radicals are groups of atoms that are unstable and highly reactive. For most biological structures including humans, free radical damage is associated with oxidative damage. Thus though oxygen gives us life, it can also be our greatest enemy. This is where we can rely on antioxidants which are reducing agents helping us to limit oxidative damage.

A significant number of problems facing people who are older can be attributed to nutritional deficiencies leading to malabsorption issues. In addiction as we age, our bodies do not assimilate nutrients as well as they once did and its systems slow down, becoming less efficient in the process. There are many disorders associated with an inability to absorb nutrients successfully. A diet that lacks essential nutrients over a long period of time leads to a greater risk of degenerative disease. Over a long period of time is a key line here. Remember that it takes many years for these problems to develop thus it also takes many years for these issues to be resolved. One can have vitality for living at any age. You should not assume that pain and illness are inevitable parts of aging process. In fact, you can feel better at sixty than you did at thirty by making healthy choices in your diet and lifestyle.

So going back to answer the question whether it is our lifestyle or genes – it is the combination of both. We cannot hide from how our bodies were programmed but we can help to control how our bodies function through lifestyle choices. These include eating naturally healthy foods that have all the essential vitamins and minerals, drinking enough water throughout the day, being functionally active so we can have it at ease with all our activities of daily living and being emotionally and spiritually healthy.

By Dr.Vadim Farian

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