Bombshell: Explosive Medical Secrets That Will Redefine Aging (6 page)
Read Bombshell: Explosive Medical Secrets That Will Redefine Aging Online
Authors: Suzanne Somers
Tags: #Health & Fitness, #Healthy Living, #Alternative Therapies, #Diseases, #Cancer
INFLAMMATION
There is
acute
inflammation and
chronic
inflammation. Acute inflammation is what happens when you get a sudden eruption, as with inflamed joints and arthritis, asthma, even acne.
Chronic inflammation is more deadly. It is mainly silent, although it can smolder in your body for twenty or thirty years until the dreaded “catastrophic event.” Heart doctors used to think that the sole cause of heart disease was the buildup of cholesterol deposits inside the walls of the coronary arteries. We now know that chronic inflammation is a major reason for cholesterol being deposited in the arteries in the first place. That’s why testing for inflammation is as important as testing for cholesterol.
Chronic inflammation is a key factor involved in Alzheimer’s. In the brain, inflammation increases both the production of toxic waste products like soluble amyloid protein and its conversion into insoluble amyloid fibrils. These wastes interfere with normal brain functioning and kill brain cells.
Chronic inflammation is a condition of type 2 diabetes. The elevation of blood sugar and insulin levels increases inflammation in the bloodstream, which triggers a series of dramatic events in the blood vessel wall that increases the risk of heart attack and stroke.
Medically speaking, inflammation is when the immune system creates an environment that oxidizes (or burns) certain cells or tissues in the body. Inflammation can become the root of many of the disease processes of aging if it is not controlled and regulated. The best measure for inflammation is to take a “high-sensitivity C-reactive protein” test. This blood test is extremely important in measuring the amount of chronic inflammation in your blood vessels.
The human body is a wonderfully complex machine designed to repair itself in the event of damage. But more and more humans are putting themselves at risk from poor diet and lifestyle choices. As a result, as we age many of our repair systems are breaking down and we suffer damage. Up until now, you’d go to your doctor with the complaints normally attributed to aging and he’d say, “What do you expect? You are old. This is what happens with aging.” It has been common thinking
that we have no control over aging and that at a certain point the best years will be behind us. What we see all around us as classic aging is not enviable—or inevitable.
Here’s the good news. You can reduce inflammation by eating more vegetables and more medium- and low-sugar fruits (especially berries) for their antioxidant value. You can also increase your fish oil consumption, make sure to exercise regularly, manage your stress, and learn to sleep eight hours nightly. (Again, see more on the specific steps to take to reverse aging throughout the book and in
part III
, “Putting It All Together.”)
GLYCATION
Sadly, it is well known that most diabetics age prematurely and die about ten years earlier than nondiabetics. One reason for this is a process called
glycation
, which binds proteins and/or fats to glucose and other sugars in the body to form nonfunctioning structures. When your body is exposed to too much sugar or carbohydrates that convert to sugar when you eat them, excess glycation is triggered. The result is called
cross-linkage
, either inside or outside the cell, which impairs the cell’s functions and causes damage to it. Diabetics suffer accelerated glycation. What few people realize is we all suffer from deadly glycation reactions, only at a slower rate.
The major undesired cross-linked molecule is low-density lipoprotein (LDL). We’ve all heard of this one. This is the bad cholesterol everyone is so worried about because these molecules oxidize (which simply means they turn rancid) and clump to the insides of arteries and other critical places. These oxidized LDL molecules are now useless and can be deadly if they are allowed to build up. If your LDL has large particles, they are harmless, but small particles can be deadly. (You can test for large or small particles by taking the Cardiac Blood Test Panel, available by calling 1-888-884-3666 or log on to
www.lef.org/goodhealth
. This is a very important test for those seeking to slash their risk of heart attack and stroke. This test measures much more than just LDL levels. It helps assess LDL particle size and other artery-clogging risk factors.)
Everyone is fixated on cholesterol, yet cholesterol in itself is not bad. The problem with cholesterol starts when it oxidizes. (Remember, this is free-radical damage.) In fact, a good balance of cholesterol is essential to our health. Very high or very low levels mean you are out of balance.
Our bodies make cholesterol for many important reasons: our brains need it for neural replication, testosterone is made from cholesterol, and the body requires cholesterol for many other uses. This cholesterol-testosterone connection sheds light on why many flaws lie with statin drugs such as Lipitor. Testosterone is a vital hormone; it builds bone and muscle, plus the heart has many testosterone receptor sites. This is your
pumping power
! Why eliminate the very substance that protects the brain and is required to produce needed testosterone, which feeds the heart through the receptor sites on the heart itself? And do I need to mention the other necessary reason men should want to maintain testosterone? How many men are impotent due to low testosterone or on Viagra because they are taking a statin, which is eliminating their ability to get an erection? The lack of understanding of mainstream medicine in wanting to eliminate the body’s ability to manufacture cholesterol is mind-boggling. The body makes cholesterol and testosterone for a reason. The inability of Western medicine to “connect the dots” is taking its toll on our men and women. It is robbing our brains for starters. (Dr. Abraham Morgentaler’s interview on testosterone will enlighten you about this very fact.) Now many doctors are urging younger men to start on Lipitor for cautionary reasons; imagine forty-year-old brains being depleted, plus men being robbed of their very man-giving substance, and then both men and women wonder why they are out of energy, not interested in sex, and having difficulty concentrating. It’s truly tragic. But I digress, back to cross-linkage …
The most obvious damage is when this cross-linkage creates gobs of gunk called
advanced glycation end products
(AGEs) that build up (like plaque in the arteries), accelerating aging and eventually causing death. AGEs cause the blood vessels to narrow, contributing to high blood pressure, vascular disease, and heart attacks. AGEs are also linked to insulin resistance, poor blood sugar control, and the accumulation of damaging amyloid substances in the brain and in the plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. Plus, AGEs are implicated in rheumatoid arthritis, kidney disease, inflammatory bowel disorders like colitis, and inflammatory skin conditions like eczema.
If you cut back on sugars; limit carbohydrates; avoid processed foods, prepackaged foods, and fast foods; avoid microwaving food; and avoid darkly browning your food by high temperatures or overcooking, you can reduce your number of AGEs considerably.
METHYLATION
Methylation imbalances are another aging factor. The DNA within every cell of your body requires constant enzymatic reactions, called
methylation
, for maintenance and repair. Aging cripples youthful methylation metabolism. The resulting DNA damage can manifest as cancer, liver damage, and brain degeneration.
Healthy methylation patterns have been shown to repair damaged DNA, breaking down potentially life-threatening cancer-causing chemicals and keeping blood levels of homocysteine in check. High homocysteine levels caused in part by methylation defects have been linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and Alzheimer’s disease.
The problem facing all maturing individuals is that methylation gradually diminishes over time, accelerating the onset of numerous age-related diseases from cancer and heart disease to cognitive impairment.
OTHER AGE PROMOTERS
In this section I briefly describe other controllable “age promoters.” The good news is that
chapter 18
of this book describes scientifically validated methods to circumvent every one of these age-accelerating factors.
M
ITOCHONDRIAL
D
YSFUNCTION
The little energy factories in the center of each and every one of our approximately fifty trillion cells are the mitochondria, which require a complex series of reactions in order to maintain important functions such as carrying nutrients through the cell membrane and allowing the purging of toxic debris. Mitochondrial energy depletion can result in congestive heart failure, muscle weakness, fatigue, and neurological disease.
L
OSS OF
M
ITOCHONDRIA
Not only do mitochondria lose their ability to function by putting out energy as we grow older but our existing mitochondria also become severely depleted. For instance, a ninety-year-old man may have 95 percent damaged mitochondria compared to almost
none in a healthy five-year-old. This reduction of cell energy can lead to many different pathologies culminating in death.
H
ORMONE
I
MBALANCE
Hormones are a language. They all speak to one another. It’s a delicate symphony keeping perfect balance. Imbalance and missing hormones are often a contributing cause to many diseases associated with aging, including depression, osteoporosis, coronary artery disease, and loss of libido. Replacing declining hormones must be done by a qualified physician. My resource section will direct you to a doctor who specializes in hormone replacement in an area nearest you.
E
XCESS
C
ALCIFICATION
Calcium ions are transported into and out of cells through calcium channels in the cell membrane. Aging disrupts calcium transport, and the result is excess calcium infiltration into the cells of the brain, heart valves, and middle arterial wall, causing arteriosclerosis.
F
ATTY
A
CID
I
MBALANCE
The body requires essential fatty acids to maintain cell energy output. Aging causes alterations in enzymes required to convert dietary fats into the specific essential fatty acids the body requires to sustain life. The effects of a fatty acid imbalance may manifest as an irregular heartbeat, joint degeneration, low energy, hypercoagulation (tendency for blood to clot), dry skin, or many other common ailments associated with normal aging.
DNA M
UTATION
Toxins mutate cellular DNA and cause cancer cells to form. Aging cells lose their DNA gene repair mechanisms, causing these cells to grow out of control—in other words, turn into cancer cells.
I
MMUNE
D
YSFUNCTION
As we age, the immune system loses its ability to attack bacteria, viruses, and cancer cells. Aging people have excessive levels of dangerous cytokines that cause the immune system to turn on
itself and create autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and others.
E
NZYME
I
MBALANCE
Cell function inside our bodies depends on multiple enzymatic reactions to occur with precise timing. Aging causes enzyme imbalance, mainly in the brain and the liver. This can result in neurological diseases like Parkinson’s, or persistent memory loss. Impaired liver function results in toxic damage to every cell in the body.
E
XCITOTOXICITY
The aging brain loses control of its release of neurotransmitters such as glutamate and dopamine, which results in brain damage and brain cell destruction.
C
IRCULATORY
D
EFICIT
Blood flow to the brain, eyes, and skin becomes impaired as we age. Disorders of the eye due to poor blood flow include cataracts, macular degeneration, and glaucoma. Major strokes and ministrokes are common with circulatory deficit to the brain. The skin of all aging people shows the lack of nutrient-rich blood to the upper layers. The prime underlying cause of circulatory deficits is endothelial dysfunction, which destroys the inner lining of blood vessels and eliminates their ability to efficiently transport blood.
L
OSS OF
Y
OUTHFUL
G
ENE
E
XPRESSION
As we age, genes that are required to sustain youthful cell function change. Those genes that maintain cell health are slowly “turned off” while genes that make us vulnerable to degenerative pathologies get “turned on.” When cells lose their youthful gene expression, we are subject to multiple diseases and eventual death.
L
OSS OF
I
NSULIN
S
ENSITIVITY
When we are young, we efficiently utilize carbohydrates for energy with a minimal amount of them getting converted to fat. As we age and we lose our sensitivity to insulin, we begin
to suffer the effects: chronically high blood glucose and high insulin.
Every one of these toxic mechanisms involved in accelerated aging can be mitigated by following the simple steps outlined in
chapter 18
, “Advanced Age Reversal.”
AGE PROMOTERS: SMOKING AND TOO
MUCH ALCOHOL
And finally, there are two other major negative influences on health and aging that you no doubt already know about: smoking and excessive alcohol consumption. These are the two biggies. The amount of harm caused to the human body from these two activities alone is a true testament to how good our repair systems actually are.