Baby Boomers Guide: Chapter 1

8/9/2019 Baby Boomers Guide: Chapter 1

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c h a p t e r

1

How our

Bodies Age

Many more surprises concerning the aging processare likely to be forthcoming. . . . The questions never end,

they just get more complex. ReubinAndres,MD AparticipantinTheBaltimore LongitudinalStudyofAging

Myth:Ourphysical andmental capacities stay at the same

level throughout ourwhole livesuntilwe become seniorcitizens.Fact:Thechangesourbodiesgothrougharedynamic;thereisnosetagewhenwemightnoticeanachewhenwewalk,aneedtoturnthevolumeup.Myth:Turn65andforgetaboutit.ItsalldownhillwithacapitalDforDependency.Fact:Eighty-sevenpercentofuswhoturn65arenotonly

abletoworkanddealwitheverydaystress,butcontinuetolivefullandhealthylives.


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4 C H A P T E R 1

Myth:Physicalagingdoesnthavetotakeplaceifwecon-tinuetostayactive.Fact:Startlingasitseems,ourphysicalabilitiesreachtheirpeakbefore we turn 21!Throughoutouradultlives,ourabili-tieschangebutsosubtlythatonlygymnastsorprofessionalathleteswillnoticethedifferencesearlyon.Whydontweseethedecline?Because as a body ages, the mind gets ner-tuned; itcompensates for any physical decline.

Mentionthewordagingandeveryonewithinearshotwillhaveanopinion.And,astheabovemythsshow,manyoftheseopinionswillbemisguidedandjustplainnegative.Thetruthisthataging,as

witheverythinginlife,hasitsgoodandbadelements.

THE GOOD STUFFWecanallmakeourownpersonallistsofthebadthingsaboutaging,thingswehavetoacceptinordertofeelcomfortableastheyearspass.Tohelpwithhandlingtheinevitable,wellmakejokes

aboutourgrayinghair,ourseniormomentmemorylapses,oursagging breasts and chins.They become material for birthdaycards,standupcomicroutines,andsitcoms.

Butwhat about thegood?Thequalitiesof aging that, likenewine,improveinthegoldenyears?Believeitornot,therearequiteafew:

Experience counts for a lot.Theolderwe get, thewiserwebecomeisnotjustaclichitsthetruth.Themoreweknow,

themoreinformationwecanusetobetterunderstandandper-form.Ourexecutivefunctions,thoseskillsthathelpusfocus,stayorganized,andplan,becomemoresharplydeveloped.

Maturity is a good thing.Theres nothingmore embarrassingthan people not acting their age. Like the gray-haired, formercheerleadertryingtokeepherschooldaysalivebynaggingtheyoung uns atevery localgame.Thewomanofacertainagewho wears mini-skirts and blue nailpolish.The gum-popping,

pot-belliedgrandmatryingtorecaptureDirtyDancingonthedanceoor.Wefeelembarrassedforthesepeople.Farbettertoactourage,poisedandgraceful.Andwiththismaturity,comesmorethana classact persona.Wellbe less impulsiveand exhibitbetter judgment.Well be able to solve problems that used topanicus. Well be more exible. Well have self-control, self-discipline,andahealthyperspectiveinotherwords:maturity.


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H o w O u r B o d i e s A g e 5

Steady routines make for stress-free living.Asweagetheroutineswe follow become ne tuned; they are in place. Reading thepaperinthemorningisnotonlymoreenjoyable,butwebrowsethroughitmoreefciently.Drivingacarbecomessecondnature;

wearebetterdriversinour40sthaninourroaring20s.Goingforawalkafterdinnerbecomesapeacefuljoy,notachorewehavetodotostayt.Goingforawalkafterdinnerbecomesapeace-fuljoy,notachorewehavetodotostayt.

Stopping to smell the roses. Themorewelivelife,themoreweappreciateit.Wecountourblessings.Weknowhowimportantourhealthis.Thebodyhasagreatcapacitytohealitself;wecanlivewithonlyasinglelungorkidney.Butwecannotsurvivewithoutour

brainandourheart.Asweage,welearntoappreciateourminds,ourabilitytomove,ourlives.And,asweexercise,asweeatright,aswekeepapositiveattitude,weknowweredoingitforourselves,fortheme, forourphysicalandmentalhealth.Anditfeelsgreat!

WHY AGE?Itsonethingtoappreciateyourage,togrowoldwithgrace,buttheres still the ironyofwhy.Yes,yourexecutive functionsaregettingnetuned.Yourexperience ispayingoff.Youremoreatpeacewithyourlifethaneverbefore.But,letsfaceit,itwouldbenicetohaveall theseplussesandthebodyandfaceofaviva-cious20-year-oldwoman!

ONCE UPON A TIME

Were not the rst people to ponder the process ofaging. As long ago as ancient Greece, the physicianGalen believed that aging was caused by such internalfactors as bile and water which, over time, made usmore susceptible to dryness and cold. In the MiddleAges scientist Roger Bacon felt that good hygienecould stop the wear and tear of the body. A centurylater, Charles Darwin applied aging to his survival ofthe ttest theory. He believed that we aged because

our nervous system and muscles became apathetic;they responded to stimuli less and less.


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6 C H A P T E R 1

Aging,liketaxes,isafactoflife.Herearesomecurrentthe-oriesthatexplainwhy:

Oh, My Aging Genes or the GeneticCellular Theory

As you learnedway back in biology, DNA is the stuff of life.Basically,itisproteinthatissetupinspeciccodesresemblingakindoftwistingladderwithineachandeveryoneofyourcells;thesecodesdeterminethecolorofyoureyes,yourbonestructure,theamountofhairyoullhaveonyourheadat20,30,and60.Inotherwords,everybitofyoufromthedeepestrecessesofyour

braintothesolesofyourfeetisformed,developed,andsustainedbythewaytheDNAinyourcellsisstackedup,orencoded.

AscientistinNewOrleanshasrecentlybeenabletoisolate14genes thatdetermine life span.Other studieshaveisolatedadeathgenethatcanshortenlife.Stillotherstudieshavefoundaclockmechanismwithinourcellsthatdetermineshowlongacellwillfunctionandreplicate(i.e.reproduce)beforeitdies.Alltotal,thecurrentresearchsuggeststhattherearepossiblyhundreds

ofgeneswithinourbodiesthatpredeterminehowlongwewillliveinthesamewaythatothergenescontrolourhaircolorandheight.Thegoodnews?Asscientistscontinuetoisolateaginggenes,theycanlearnhowtoactuallyaddproteinstoourcells;theycanchangethecodeofaDNAstrand.Insteadofadeathgene,wemayhavelife!

Blue Genes or the DNA Toxic-Shock Theory

Cells are efcient entities.They cangrow, divide, and replicate;buildingourbodies,hearts,andminds,fromtheinsideout.Whenwereact tostress,ourcellsreverberatewithinus. Itiscellsthatsendmessagestoandfromthebrainregardingatraumawearefeelingorperceiving.Itiscellsthatcreateasharppain,atearinthe eye. And, located within each of our billions of cells, isDNAwhichcanalsoreacttotheshockofstress.Infact,there

isoneparticularstrandofDNAproteinthatexistsspecicallytohelpthecellrespondandcopewithstress.Itscalledheated shockprotein (HSP).ScientistsattheGerontologyResearchCenterinBaltimore,Maryland,havefoundthatcellsproducelessandlessHSPasweage.Whatdoes thismean?Aswe growolder, it is


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possible that we can cope less with stress, especially physicalstress.And,becausestressitselfcanmakeusfeelold,lowerHSPlevelsinourcellsbecomesatrueparadox:thedifcultieswehaveindealingwithstressgeneratesevenmorestress.Thebestadvice:Learnhowtocopewithstressinyoureverydaylife.Maintainahealthy lifestyle. Itwillkeepthe emotional andphysicalshocksandstressesthatageusatbay.(See Chapter Five, Keeping Depressionat Bay, as well as Part III of this book.)

Throw the Garbage Out Now!or the Accumulation Damage Theory

Overtime,wastebeginstobuildupinacell.Dark,globby,andseemingly invincible, this substance, called lipofuscin, eventuallytakesupsomuchroomthatcellfunctionisimpaired.Thecellcangetsluggishandeventuallydie.

Othertoxicwasteincludesfreeradicalsoxygen-deprivedmoleculesthatareabyproductofnormalmetabolism.Thankstotheir craving for oxygen, these greedy free radicals combinequicklyandeasilywithothermoreenrichedmoleculesinthecell.

ThenewchemicalcombinationsthatresultfromthisunioncandamagecellsandtheirDNA.Agingisaccelerated.

But the body has a built-in defense against free radicals:antioxidants. In the best science ction fashion, antioxidantenzymes, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), and antioxidantvitamins,suchasCandE,attackthefreeradicalsoatingaroundinacellandneutralizethem.Someoftheseenzymeseatthecelldamagecausedbyfreeradicalsandothertoxins.Stillothersrepairdamaged protein.We dont even have to wait for the bodysantioxidantstokickin.WecanaddourowntroopsbyroutinelytakingvitaminA,C,andEsupplementsantioxidantsall.

ITS NEVER TOO LATE

At the age of 67, a woman named Emma Gatewooddecided to take a hike. She ended up walking theentire length of the Appalachian Trail, from Maine toGeorgia. She had such a good time that in herseventies she hiked the trail againtwice.


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I Have Seen the Enemy and It is Usor the Immune System Decline Theory

Ourimmunesystemliterallysavesourlives,tirelesslyseekingout

alienviruses,bacteria,germs,andbacteriathathaveinvadedourbodies. Once an alien is recognized, specialized cells called B-lymphocytesproduceantibodiesthatwardoffthealiensandren-der them harmless. Other cells calledT-lymphocytes (T-cells)aggressivelyattacktheforeigners,destroyingthemonimpact.Aswegrowolder,T-cellsandantibodieslosesomeoftheirefcien-cy.Theybecomesluggish;theycannotalwaysrecognizeanalienfromafriend.Normal,healthy cells aredestroyedbymistake;

alien germs and viruses are able to permeate cells andmutatethemandtheirDNA.Somescientistscallthisthediseaseofaging.Anditistrue

thatthedeclineoftheimmunesystemcanmakeusmoresuscep-tible to cancers, pneumonia, and other diseases. But there hasbeen promising researchdonewithDHEA (dehydroepiandros-terone) in Salt Lake City, Utah.A hormone produced by thebody, DHEA, has been linked to the immune system and theagingprocess.WebegintoproducelessandlessDHEAfromage

30on;whenlaboratoryratsweregivenDHEAasasupplementtheirimmunesystemsreceivedadramaticboost.However,dontrunoutandstarttakingDHEAjustyet.Manymorestudiesmustbeperformed.Butitsapromisingbeginning!

My Biological Clock is Ticking or the HormonalBalance Theory

Thenervoussystem(especiallythehypothalamusinyourbrain)andtheendocrinesystem(includingthepancreasandthepitu-itary,thyroid,andadrenalglands)workintandemtoefcientlyproducechemicalscalledhormones.Thesehormones,orchemi-cals, in turn, regulate ourmetabolism,ourbloodglucose levels,ourbodytemperature,andourabilitytocopewithchangesintheenvironment.And,aseverywomanknows,theyalsoregulateourmenstrualcycle and theonsetofmenopause. (Remember how

yourheartbeatwildly,yourfaceushed,andyourwholebodyrevvedupthelasttimeyourcarskidded,yourchildleanedbackinherchair,oryouthoughtyouweregoingtohaveahotashin front of the whole conference room? Thats your neuro-endocrinesystemasitsbest,gettingyoureadyforaction.)

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Unfortunately,theendocrinesystembeginstodeclinewithage. Studies have found that the pancreas in older people, forexample,doesnotreleaseenoughofthehormoneinsulinwhenamealhasbeeneaten. Insufcientamountsofinsulinmeansthatblood-sugarlevelswillriseandadult-onsetdiabetescanoccur.

Anotherexample:Asweknow,estrogenproductionstopsatmenopause.Whenestrogenproduction stops,womenagemorerapidlyandmaybecomemoresusceptibletoheartattacks;theymayalsoexperiencesexualdysfunction.HormonalReplacementTherapy(HRT)mayprotectagainstseveralproblemsrelatedtoaging.(See Chapter Six.)Butwhatmightnotbecommonknowl-edgeisthatalinkexistsbetweenestrogenandthehypothalamus.

Thehypothalamus,deepwithinthebrain,tellsthepituitaryglandtoproduceestrogen;itmustalsotelltheglandtostop.Whatdoesthismean?That a biological clock must reside in the hypothalamus, aclock that regulates aging.Identifythistimepieceandwhoknows?Likeanygoodwatch,itmaybeabletoberepairedandrestoredformanyyears.

Welcome to theworld of aging. Yes, there are someharsh

andcomplicatedtruths,buttheyarecounteredbyendlesspossi-bilities.Thefutureisnotyethere.


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Baby Boomers Guide: Chapter 1

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