Exercise prevents & even reverses aging….

Today's post: Tuesday, 9-18-2007

Exercise improves your circulation; helps prevent diseases like type II diabetes & cardiovascular disease that make circulation worse; & releases extra growth hormones including testosterone.

So, if you exercise every week, every part of you functions better; & your body keeps itself in better repair than if you don’t.

In this way, exercise helps prevent aging.

Recent research has found this process works so well, exercise even reverses aging in your muscles. And, other recent research found that exercise triggers the growth of new neurons in your nervous system & brain.

I was reminded of this by an article in today’s Early to Rise by Jon Benson.

It’s well enough done, I include it here.:

This article appears courtesy of Early To Rise, the Internet’s most popular health, wealth, and success e-zine. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com/.

“The Unbelievable Anti-Aging Properties of Resistance Exercise By Jon Benson

Of all the studies I have read, this one from the Buck Institute for Age Research seals the deal. The study headline reads: Resistance Exercise Reverses Aging in Human Skeletal Muscle.

Not "slows" or "repairs." Reverses.

As we age, our muscles begin to show what researchers call "mitochondrial dysfunction." (The mitochondria is the energy factory of the human cell.) This is what causes all the bad stuff associated with "sarcopenia," the gradual wasting away of muscle due to age and under-use that most people experience.

The problem? The less muscle you have, the more body fat you will gain - even if you don't eat any more food. Muscle loss is also related to the onset of bone diseases, including osteoporosis and even various forms of arthritis. The muscles that hold the spine in alignment can deteriorate as we age and cause major back problems. The same is true for the muscles and tendons around the knee and hip joints.

Resistance exercise - training with weights or by using your body weight - builds muscle. And it does so at any age. But the real find of the Buck Institute study is that after just six months of resistance training, test subjects (all of them 65 or older) showed a "reversal of most of the genes affected by age" in muscle tissue.

After the subjects engaged in resistance training (in this case, simple weight training), their strength increased by over 20 percent. And their genes literally "reverted back" to the same markers as "younger" genes after only six months of exercise.

Maintaining muscle as we age is good. Gaining muscle is even better. But literally reverting our genes to a "younger version" within the muscle - after only six months - is mind boggling.

Add resistance training to your exercise regimen. You'll look better and feel better than you ever have.

[Ed. Note: Jon Benson, a lifecoach and nutrition counselor who specializes in helping individuals discover a life-altering mind/body connection, offers practical advice for becoming stronger, healthier, and more energetic in the articles he writes for ETR's FREE natural health e-letter. His work in the field of post-40 fitness and mental empowerment has helped countless thousands. Learn how you can do the same at http://www.fitover40.com/ or http://www.mpowerfitness.com/.]”
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Our added comments.:

Similar research has shown that regular exercise triggers the growth of new neurons in your brain & nervous system.

This effect when combined with the better circulation exercise causes & the things exercise does to help prevent your circulation from getting worse means that exercise helps prevent & can help reverse age related or vascular mental decline.

And, there is reason to believe this effect also helps prevent Alzheimer’s disease.

(Since Friday, 9-21 this week is a national day to focus on Alzheimer’s disease as an issue, our post will be the long list of other things you can do to prevent Alzheimer’s disease & age related or vascular mental decline.

Some of these methods will surprise you. But they all work.)

The other notable point Jon makes is that:

“As we age, our muscles begin to show what researchers call "mitochondrial dysfunction." (The mitochondria is the energy factory of the human cell.) This is what causes all the bad stuff associated with "sarcopenia," the gradual wasting away of muscle due to age and under-use that most people experience.”

Guess what? There is another method to prevent or reverse this "mitochondrial dysfunction." AND prevent having it get worse.

One of the other causes of "mitochondrial dysfunction." is that one of the ways our bodies power our mitochondria is by using CoQ10. As people age their blood levels of CoQ10 decrease -- apparently because our bodies become less able to make it well from the nutrients we consume.

But you can now supplement with CoQ10. Depending on your age & other factors you may increase the level of functioning of your mitochondria quite a bit by taking 100 mg a day of CoQ10 each morning or by doing that & also taking a second 100 mg each day about mid-day. If you are over 40, try out 100 mg a day. Or if you are over 50 or have high blood pressure or any heart disease, try 200 mg a day.

And, taking CoQ10 has other benefits besides reinvigorating all your mitochondria. In people with high blood pressure it has lowered their numbers by 16 & 9 or 15 & 10 in various studies. That’s as good or better than taking drugs that reduce high blood pressure often do.

CoQ10 also strengthens your heart. Unfortunately, despite their proven benefits, statin drugs LOWER CoQ10. So, if you take statin drugs it will pay you to take 200 mg a day of CoQ10. Mercifully, many doctors now know this. But if your doctor doesn’t, it’s still wise to take CoQ10. You’ll feel better & your heart will benefit.

In summary, if you’d like to remain more youthful, slow aging, stay mentally competent & remain in good health, exercise regularly each week; be sure to include strength training; & take CoQ10.