We’re just coming off a month that celebrated Older Americans Month and the many ways they bring inspiration to the lives of others and communities in which they live. It’s also about helping older Americans live longer, healthier and more engaged lives, which is right up our alley at Natural Healthy Concepts!
When I think about the epitome of healthy aging, my mind pictures my 88 year old, vibrant mother and then, Jack LaLanne in that short-sleeved jumpsuit with his biceps busting out. Jack heard a lecture on proper diet when he was 15 and by age 21 he was obsessed by exercise and good nutrition. He ate 2 meals a day, lots of salmon, plenty of blended raw vegetables and fruits (in that famous juicer) and shunned snacks – quite revolutionary back then! Most people thought he was a nut and doctors were against him – not surprising! Jack LaLanne lived to the ripe, old age of 96. Not radical now! Want to live healthier and longer?
Similar to the basic ingredients necessary to grow a tomato in your new garden, we too need lots of warn sunshine, proper water, organic rich nutrients, a good bed for rest and enough space to spread around in to ripen to old age. If you’re living a healthy lifestyle, you already know these essential basics. And like Jack LaLanne, you’re eating plenty of whole food fruits and vegetables plus whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds and shunning processed foods.  Let’s chat about what you might not know about healthy aging?
MAKE SURE YOUR BLOOD MAINTAINS NEUTRAL PH (aka Acid) BALANCE
Avoiding high acidity level in the blood is paramount! All minerals are vital nutrients for and have specific functions in the body, with potassium, magnesium and calcium being a few of the major minerals not only found in larger amounts the body but also demanded by the body in larger amounts. The body’s acidity level depends on the ratio of calcium, potassium and magnesium (aka buffering minerals) to phosphorus (aka acid). When acidity level builds, the body’s metabolic acid base is imbalanced requiring the body to rob stored potassium and other buffering minerals to neutralize/alkalize the acid.
Foods high in acid are processed foods and animal proteins such as meat and dairy. Foods high in alkaline and major minerals are just like Jack’s juiced favorite – raw vegetables and fruits. The ideal ph balance is 7 (actually 7.365) in the middle between acidity and alkaline. Make sure your blood maintains neutral ph balance to avoid life threatening consequences, such as fluid retention, high blood pressure, diabetes and other chronic health conditions. Eat and treat the power of food as your best medicine. In the convenience of your home and just like home pregnancy tests, you can easily test your ph balance with urinalysis test strips!
DO STRENGTHÂ TRAINING EXERCISEÂ TO COMBAT MUSCLE MASS LOSS
Muscle fibers and muscle protein production diminish as we grow older resulting in less muscle mass (aka sarcopenia). A study presented in Life Extension Magazine estimated that skeletal muscle mass decreases 35% to 40% in men and women in the five decades of life between 20 and 80 years of age. Muscle mass loss can cripple mobility from walking and climbing stairs to getting up and down from a chair, a bed. It can lead to sedentary lifestyle causing even more muscle loss and compromised health, such as heart disease and diabetes.
Multiple studies have shown that strength training and even yoga, despite physical limitations, in the older adult improves body composition, increases muscle mass, increases mobility and protects against muscle mass loss. Age Is No Barrier to Muscle Building, according to natural health expert, Dr. Weil. Supplementing strength training with a potent antioxidant can be a powerful healthy ally. And lastly…
DON’T LET INFLAMMAGING GET YOU – RELIEF CHRONIC INFLAMMATION NOW
As we age, our immune system goes haywire causing chronic inflammation (aka inflammaging). The National Institute of Health research suggests inflammation as the foremost cause in the development of all major age-related diseases! The research asserts that if chronic inflammation, even low level inflammation, isn’t relieved, you risk the increase of other chronic health problems – osteoporosis, muscle mass loss (sound familiar?), anemia, cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s Disease, colon cancer, CHF and heart trouble, diabetes, digestive disorders and others. Research shows that relief from chronic inflammation results in a longer, healthier life. (Source: Nutrition News, Special Edition-Curamin.)
Because inflammation also increases the rampage of free radicals in the body, here’s yet another reason to supplement with a powerful antioxidant to help in the body’s defense. Curamin is such an antioxidant supplement! Not only is it hugely popular in our nutrition store, it was a recently featured product on NaturalNews.com and their Robert Scott Bell radio show. Dr. Mercola, alternative medicine expert, recommends the phenomenally beneficial antioxidant of Astaxanthin (50-60 times more potent than vitamins C and E) – and he takes it too!
Last resort to aging healthier and longer - drinking red wine? It has resveratrol, a powerful antioxidant. Jack LaLanne drank red wine! Cheers to all older Americans living longer, healthier and more engaged lives.
