It is known that ageing is the main risk factor for chronic diseases and disability in human societies with a great impact on social and health spending.
So far, aging and, eventually, death are inevitable.
However, research efforts on diseases associated with aging with the aim of not only prolonging life but also increasing health in an attempt to delay, halt, and even reverse the aging process, have not stopped growing.

The rapid technological advances achieved in recent years have led to the progressive identification of epigenetic changes associated with age.
Not only do these studies contribute to shedding light on the molecular basis of ageing and age-related diseases, but, given the plasticity of epigenetic modifications, they also provide the basis for anti-ageing interventions to counteract the emergence of age-related diseases.

You are what you eat

As the great Hippocrates said, “let your food be your medicine and your medicine be your food”.
Thus, a growing number of studies suggest that nutrition is one of the most promising anti-aging interventions.

The nutrients present in our diet can reverse or change epigenetic phenomena such as DNA methylation and histone modifications, thereby modifying the expression of critical genes associated with physiological and pathological processes, including embryonic development, aging, and carcinogenesis.
It appears that nutrients and bioactive components in food can influence epigenetic phenomena, either by directly inhibiting enzymes that catalyze DNA methylation or histone modifications, or by altering the availability of substrates needed for those enzymatic reactions.
In this sense, nutritional epigenetics has been seen as an attractive tool to prevent pediatric developmental diseases and cancer, as well as to delay the processes associated with aging.
In recent years, epigenetics has become an emerging topic in a wide range of diseases such as type II diabetes, obesity, inflammation, and neurocognitive disorders.
DOI: 10.3945/an.110.1004

Anti-aging nutritional interventions carried out today include calorie restriction, time-restricted eating, intermittent fasting, fasting-mimicking diets, diets with limited amounts of some nutrients, and diets with phytochemicals and essential fatty acids.
Among pharmacological approaches, several drugs are aimed at mediating the effects of calorie restriction and other restrictive diets; among them we can count resveratrol, polyphenols, metformin, rapamycin, etc.

Other pharmacological interventions are aimed at avoiding the primary causes of aging, such as telomere activators and repairers to prevent telomere wear or medications to selectively eliminate senescent cells.
Age-associated changes in the microbiota also appear to play a key role in the ageing process and the study of ageing has become the target of anti-ageing interventions.

Calorie restriction extends both health and lifespan in several short-duration experimental models and has brought to light the role of different molecular effectors involved in nutrient sensing pathways and longevity.
This opens up the possibility of modulating these molecular effectors in humans as well to increase longevity and health.
The difficulty in implementing calorie-restricted diets in humans has led to the development of new, more appropriate diets, such as time-restricted eating, intermittent fasting, or diets with limited amounts of some nutrients.
Studies also focus on the search for pharmacological agents targeting effectors that mediate life and health extension in response to these anti-aging diets.
There are also pharmacological approaches that eliminate senescent cells or prevent the main causes of aging. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbadis.2019.165612

Move it, move it

Several recent major studies have clearly shown that low fitness represents a potent risk factor and even a predictor of cardiovascular and all-cause morbidity and mortality. It is widely demonstrated that regular exercise of at least 15 to 20 minutes a day is highly beneficial for all people, including individuals who are in good health, as well as those who need supportive medications.
Genetic and environmental factors, including lifestyle, contribute to cardiovascular disease, cancer, and other major causes of mortality and that numerous lines of evidence indicate that environmental factors are the most important in determining disease prevention.
Therefore, environmental factors can certainly have the strongest influence on life expectancy and therefore life span.

Properly performed, physical exercise is the best means currently available to delay and prevent the consequences of aging, and to promote health and well-being.

It is important to differentiate between three different but interrelated concepts: physical activity, physical exercise and physical condition. Physical activity refers to any body movement produced by muscle action that increases energy expenditure.
Exercise refers to planned, structured, repetitive, and purposeful physical activity.
Physical fitness is the ability to perform physical exercise.
Physical fitness refers to the full range of physical qualities, such as aerobic capacity, strength, speed, agility, coordination, and flexibility.
It can be understood as an integrated measure of all functions (musculoskeletal, cardiorespiratory, hematocirculatory, psychoneurological and endocrinemetabolic) and structures involved in the performance of physical activity, physical exercise or both.
Therefore, being physically fit implies that the response of these functions and structures will be adequate.
In recent years, numerous epidemiological and prospective studies have reported a strong association between physical fitness and the morbidity-mortality rate of the population , even in overweight and obese people.
DOI: 10.2147/ciia.2006.1.3.213

Aerobic capacity is one of the most important components of physical fitness.
Several major prospective studies have shown that VO2 max is the most important predictor of all-cause mortality and, in particular, cardiovascular death.
This applies to both healthy people and those with cardiovascular disease DOI: 10.1001/jama.290.23.3092

Not everything is leaving your mind blank

Gone are the days when we thought meditating was just a matter of blanking your mind (who could!).
The almost infinite meditation techniques we know today show us how easy it is to put them into practice.
And not only that, but they are also good for generating good healthy habits, avoiding syndromes such as burnout and organizing our thoughts. Stressors and stress-related negative reactions have been documented and recognized to have multiple sequelae related to poor health, and exposure to chronic social stress has been associated with many systemic and mental disorders. These have significant harmful results that significantly reduce life expectancy.
DOI: 10.1196/annals.1322.038

Meditation and mindfulness are terms that have infiltrated mainstream culture.
These terms are often used interchangeably, but there are subtle differences between the two.
Meditation usually refers to a formal practice that can calm the mind and improve our own awareness, our minds, and our environment.
Meditation in its many forms has been practiced for millennia by diverse groups of people in many different traditions.
Previously practiced primarily in the East, meditation has spread to Western society and is increasingly used as a therapeutic modality.
Mindfulness as a term has become ubiquitous in recent times. Mindfulness simply means being aware of the present moment.
Meditation comes under the umbrella of mindfulness, which is a broader concept.
Formal meditation practices include mindfulness of the breath, compassion or loving-kindness-focused meditation, the use of mantras or phrases as the center of meditation, among many others.

Psychological stressors can lead to distress and result in autonomic arousal and the activation of a stress response. Ongoing or persistent stress can disrupt the feedback mechanisms of the stress response and result in elevated levels of cortisol and pro-inflammatory cytokines that can damage brain regions involved in regulating mood and emotions. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpnec.2021.100037

One study found differences between an experimental group that practiced meditation over a 14-week period and a control group that did not meditate.
The average age of the subjects in the experiment was 24 years, most were university students, single, watched television an average of 2.41 hours a day and had a grade point average of 2.83 (on a 4.0 scale).
Differences were found between meditators and non-meditators for a number of variables including: feeling upset by criticism from others, taking tranquilizers or synthetic mood-changing drugs, and pain in muscles and joints.
The work supports the idea that meditation is beneficial in several ways.
Among these subjects, meditators benefited the most in terms of experiencing fewer symptoms of muscle or joint pain and also less use of drugs and tranquilizers. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0362-3319(03)00043-0

Our contribution

With a complete range of products of natural origin, Salengei offers you the highest quality in nutrition through ACTIVE FOODS.

These products in the range are formulated in powder form and have been designed to be easy to dissolve in broths, fruit juices, purees and other foods.
In addition, they have specifications that can be adapted for athletes, older people with different nutritional requirements, children, people in weight loss processes or those who want to carry out a healthy and anti-aging diet.

Another star product that we are very proud to market is TA-65, which is a food supplement with proven effects on telomere repair.

Conclusion

We have talked in another article about the different theories of aging, and many researchers claim that aging is a disease that can be treated.

In our laboratory we have supplements that can help you improve nutrition, mediate and reduce cellular inflammation, detoxify your body, fight against free radicals, repair telomeres (TA-65) and help your immune system.
This is already a good enough help to get started, and we leave it to you to find which meditation technique you are most comfortable with.

Remember that the achievement is a sum of factors and not isolated actions.
Today we have commented and contrasted the main interventions that are totally within our reach, to achieve a fuller life.
These interventions, which are nutrition, exercise and meditation, have clear scientific support that proves their effectiveness when implementing them.

If you have set out to be healthier for 2023, find out about the ACTIVE FOODS products available and don’t forget to send us a message with your questions.
We are here to advise you and help you take the big step towards a better life.