Antiaging – Nowadays people are aging faster than the biological clock would justify
Humanity constantly researching the mystery of eternal life, and at the same time, finding newer and more damaging factors to make it shorter and smaller. Some would freeze themselves to escape their serious illness, so that at some point in the future they would be able to live a longer or eternal life in the same body by bringing themselves out of the refrigeration chamber, with the advanced abilities of medicine.
What do I think about this?
I myself do not believe that this body can be eternalized by any scientific manipulation. The most important attribute of life in this world is the birth, full development of the body, the weakening, sickness and its death. The only question is how much time is available between the two endpoints of this cycle. I do believe however, that this interval can be extended by up to 20-30%, and I also believe that with a responsible lifestyle its shortening can be avoided.
What is responsible for aging?
The two sides of redox biology – What is oxidation?
Oxidation is an important concept in nature. When we cut an apple or a potato in half, we can experience what it is like when the shell no longer protects the crop, and when oxidation blackens the now defenseless surface within a few hours, and then gradually the whole crop. During oxidation, the living material is consumed and destroyed.
During oxidation, the substance takes up an electron and it forms into a more stable state. The reducing substance releases an electron, loses an electron, and thus becomes to a more stable but energetically weaker state. During oxidation, energy is generated that can be utilized by nature or by the body. For example the formation of water from hydrogen and oxygen (see hydrogen-powered car design), burning of wood, oil, gasoline, or coal in engines and power plants, or the oxidation of glucose in the body is also an oxidation process, but ultimately the consumption of the energy carrier (glucose in our last example). Oxidizing agents, such as oxygen, ozone, fluorine, chlorine, bromine, certain molecules with electron negativity, or the so-called free radicals. The opposite of oxidizing agents are reducing agents or substances that suffer the oxidation. They are able to give away electron. Usually these are carbon, metals, trace elements, vitamins, and even organic matter, i.e. living matter, such as potato or apple fruits and the organic matter contained in them, as in the example above.
During life molecules are created with the help of energy, solar energy or enzymes that are capable of absorbing energy. These molecules are carriers of higher energy, which are more unstable and are able to “satisfy” the negative (electron deficient) molecules, molecule parts, or even destroying them by passing them an electron. So life on a molecular level is a constant struggle between these two sides: oxidation and reduction, oxidizing agents and reducing materials, production and depletion of living matter, development of life, or aging.
The importance of balance
The living matter, be it just a bacterium, which is present in huge quantities in our intestine, continuously produces reducing substances, complex organic matters, vitamins, which are capable to undergo oxidation and destruction during redox biology or able to reduce the oxidant materials. The yin-yang principle can be found in the details of the science of redox biology. It cannot be said that oxidation is not good, because the used tissue parts, the aging of cells, the inflammatory defense process, and the killer function of the immune system require that the body can use the oxidation to eliminate unnecessary organic substances and invaders. It cannot be said also, that antioxidants (or reducing agents) are just good, because during fat rancidity (which is also oxidation) substances form (ketones, aldehydes) that are dangerous to the body.
Balance is the only thing that matters. Nowadays we can only believe that oxidation or the formation of free radicals is a bad process, because today’s lifestyle accelerated the formation of free radicals (ROS) tremendously, meaning that one is aging faster than his biological clock would suggest, the antioxidant is less than the prooxidant.
What are free radicals and what are antioxidants?
We could simply say that there are prooxidants or free radicals, and on the other side, their opponents, antioxidants. This struggle lasts for a lifetime, and health requires a good balance of the two forces, the so-called good outcome from redox biology.
Free radicals are molecules or molecular fragments of reactive oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, or carbon, which have an unpaired electron, usually move quickly and constantly collide with other useful molecules, cells, tissues in the living organism, and are immediately causing damage there. They are very aggressive and have short lifespan due to these qualities, a kind of “kamikaze particles” which, though destroyed in the reaction they clash, but also destroy or significantly alter the structure of the molecule being attacked. During the oxidation process proteins, nucleic acids and fats are damaged and this causes aging and the development of chronic diseases.
Antioxidants, on the other hand, reduce oxidative stress. They capture free radicals before they damage vital molecules, cellular parts. Antioxidants are hydrogen donors, electron donors, peroxide killers, so-called singlet oxygen scavengers, enzyme inhibitors, synergists, metal chelator producers. Antioxidants are extremely diverse: mainly vitamins (A, C, E, beta-carotene, gamma-linolenic acid), enzymes (superoxide dismutase, glutathione reductase, etc.), amino acids, metals, chelating proteins (transferrin, etc.), secondary plant materials (flavonoids).
They are able to reduce age-related visual impairment, acute and chronic inflammation, wearing, deposition, fatigue, and improve the tendency to heal. Some of the antioxidants can be measured by laboratory methods, but not their total amount. Their behavior and quantity can be deducted from clinical and preclinical studies.
What is oxidative stress?
During oxidative stress the free radicals damage cells, as they are produced in the body in an uncontrolled way and quantities. Another reason for the decrease of antioxidants is unhealthy, vitamin-deficient diet (consumption of canned foods, animal products, manipulated foods). This stress is not the psychic stress known in common terms, although psychic stress intervenes in this same redox biology on the side of free radicals. Free radical formation is characterized by the fact that the unhealthier a person’s life is, the more harmful factors they suffer, the greater their quantity, the more they are overproduced and the body becomes more defenseless.
Free radicals are constantly produced in the body, especially if it is supported by an unhealthy lifestyle or is supported by certain external factors: radiation, tobacco smoke, industrial solvents, chemicals, electrosmog, additives, etc. Harmful free radicals are overcomed by the body through a sensitive system, so it’s controlling their formation. If the dominance of the oxidation process develops, the disease and aging progress more rapidly, creating acute or lasting oxidative stress. At the molecular level, oxidative stress is one of the most important prerequisites for aging, becoming ill, or incapable of healing.
Health – Prevention – Anti-aging
There are many signs of oxidative stress: rapid aging of the skin (especially observed in smokers), wrinkling, impaired joint function, permanent damage to the digestive system, impaired vision, decreased production of enzymes, depletion of certain glandular functions (diabetes, hyperthyroidism, etc.). These are well complemented by certain preclinical testing methods, laboratory tests, microscopic examinations. When I find oxidative stress during medical examination I have no other option but to save what I can, because oxidative stress causes damage that is permanent, similar to teeth loss, causing irreversible changes, aging in the body. A scar tissue will never be functional again, it will not produce moisture, it will not shrink smoothly like a juvenile ligament or muscle. However, if oxidative stress is not eliminated, the process will destroy existing healthy structures with the same speed, kamikaze free radicals will destroy millions of fragile tissues, and there is no chance for the individual to live a quality life.
Life will mercilessly shorten each day, and suffering and limitations will continue to increase. So the fight against aging is not just about the beauty industry, wrinkle removal, but about a disease-free, complaints-free quality of life.
It is possible to overdose antioxidants to revolutionize the imbalanced system. This is generally limited by the amount of antioxidants that can be absorbed through the mouth. It’s not possible to take more than 3-4 grams of vitamin C as it can cause diarrhea and will not be absorbed anyway, only 10-20%. High-dose infusion vitamin therapy is temporarily a good alternative, but one should always be aware that it is only a symptomatic treatment if the person does not solve the smoking, intestinal condition, stress management that causes free radical storm.
It is not possible to avoid lifestyle change. There is no alternative to plant-based nutrition, exercise, sports or giving up bad habits. Everyone’s life and destiny is individual, everybody has different focus, made different mistakes, needs to correct different things, that is why a medical examination to clarify the situation, medical intervention in the field of individual oxidative stress, is essential. The reform, overcoming the bad habits and weaknesses of the past is everyone’s own personal battle, and as a doctor I can only help. Life also, according to the laws of molecular biology is learning, self-control, and a beautiful play, or without these is suffering, drift and lethargy.
source: My article in the naturopath magazine
