Healthy Aging: Body, Mind & Spirit

Coenzyme Q-10 versus Ubiquinol

I just learned something I wish I had known ten years ago.   Dr. OZ had Dr. Mercola on last week.   He said Ubiquinol is the type of Coenzyme Q-10 everyone over age 45 should be taking.

Coenzyme Q10 is one fantastic nutrient.  Your body typically makes plenty of it in your liver when you’re young, but when your body stops making enough, it is hard to replace because the supplement CoQ10 is hard for the body to absorb.    Fortunately, there’s one type of CoQ10 that is more easily absorbed:   Ubiquinol!

CoQ10 is a critical nutrient for your cells’ tiny energy-producing furnaces known as your mitochondria, found everywhere in your body.  These are the parts that are effected the most when Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) hits.  CoQ10 is required for your cells to make energy, and ubiquinol is a better choice for those over 45.

Many now believe that CFS is caused when the mitochondria in your cells stop producing energy properly, causing diseases like heart failure.

My husband has suffered with CFS for the past 20 years and he has found great relief by taking the supplements recommended by Dr. Sarah Myhill in England, including Coenzyme Q-10.

Humming for your health!

If you’re someone like me who unconsciously hums all the time, this is good news!

Are you getting the right amount of calcium and vitamin D?

So much confusion on this subject!  Here’s a NYT article with the latest!

Want to learn more about getting a good night’s sleep?

I just received some linky love from Jasmine Hall, who writes this blog. I know it says it’s for college students, but this information is useful for anyone who wants to understand more about their sleep or lack there of!

Jasmine likes my “Stress Management for Writers” blog! You may too!

Could thyroid drugs improve your life?

A study in England showed that at least 100,000 people over 50 were suffering from an under active thyroid resulting in a condition called hypothyroidism.   Symptoms include depression, forgetfulness as well as fatigue and weight gain.   These symptoms are too often mistaken for general signs of aging and are either misdiagnosed or go undiagnosed for years.

Learn more here.

News of a pioneering surgery to treat depression

A medical team at Frenchay Hospital in Bristol, England is pioneering a new form of surgery to treat long term depression.

The technique is called deep brain stimulation and involves the use of electrodes implanted in the brain.

Learn more here!

What do we really know about the aging process?

Scientists are slowly unlocking the secrets of aging, and some treatments may soon be at hand to slow or even reverse it.

But what can science really achieve, and what are the dangers of meddling with our biological clocks?

Learn more here!

“Prozac on a plate” and Boomer Belly!

These are a couple of expressions that were new to me yesterday when I saw the PBS show Life (Part2). Unfortunately, I can relate to them too!

“Prozac on a plate” is the expression now used for when we cope with our own unhappiness, frustration, depression or any number of bad feelings within ourselves by eating something comforting.   If you don’t think you do this then think again.   Observe your behavior when you are feeling down about something you feel you cannot do anything about.   Are you magically drawn to the kitchen?   Do you feel the need to eat something really tasty, preferably something with lots of sugar, salt and/or fat in it, even though you aren’t even hungry?   You are now in search of Prozac on a plate!

This is one of the reasons why so many of us develop “Boomer Belly.”   Between life changes, emotional changes, hormones and major slow downs in our natural rate of metabolism, it may come to seem almost inevitable.   I know I never had such a belly before age 50!  Geezer gut indeed!

You might want to check out this new show which focuses on Part 2 of life sometime for some interesting health insights.

Is arthritis inherited?

More than 40 million of us suffer with some form of arthritis. Many have pain so severe, it limits daily activities. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of the disease and it affects about 16 million Americans; Rheumatoid Arthritis, a condition more crippling of the two, affects 2.1 million people.

OSTEOARTHRITIS causes pain and swelling and as a result, reduced motion in joints.   Although it can affect any joint the most common locations are hands, knees, hips, and even the spine.   Osteoarthritis causes cartilage, which is the slippery tissue that protects the ends of bones and absorbs the shock of movement, to deteriorate.   Thanks to this break down, bones rub together causing ever increasing pain.

Although osteoarthritis has long been known to be a result of aging, or injury, medical experts say the disease may also runs in families.   In fact, some studies show that osteoarthritis is occasionally found in multiple members of the same family.   Geneticists believe that there may be one or more genetic factors involved.   According to one study of 481 families — each of which contained at least one sibling pair with osteoarthritis — a susceptibility gene was discovered located on something called “Chromosome 11q.”    It was female specific.  In fact, it’s also known that osteoarthritis develops more frequently (but not exclusively) in women.

RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS causes the lining of joints to become inflamed.   As the disease progresses, it damages tendons, ligaments, cartilage and bone in the joints.   It can also damage other areas of the body such as lungs, eyes, and blood vessels.   This form of arthritis is actually two to three times more common in women than it is in men and roughly begins between the ages of 40 to 60.   At this point, experts are not sure what causes rheumatoid arthritis, but they do know this disease causes the body’s own natural defense (immune) system to attack joints.

It is believed that the tendency to develop rheumatoid arthritis may be genetic condition.   One study from Holland shows that people who eventually develop rheumatoid arthritis usually have abnormal arthritis blood tests long before they develop joint pains.   Yet, there is no single gene to blame for rheumatoid arthritis.   When one family member develops the disease the risk to others in the family is small.    The main risk comes from a group of genes known as HLA-DRB1 alleles.   On the other hand, several genes appear to be involved, each of which exerts only small effects to different degrees in different people.

In 2007, researchers in Manchester, England, identified a genetic variant in part of chromosome 6 that is associated with rheumatoid arthritis.   It’s thought that this variant, although not a gene itself, may affect the behavior of a nearby gene called tumor necrosis factor associated protein gene (TNFAIP3), which is known to be involved in the process of inflammation.

But it is also suspected that certain infections or factors in the environment might trigger the activation of the immune system in susceptible individuals.   For example, scientists have reported that smoking tobacco increases the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis.   Whatever the cause, the misdirected immune system attacks the body’s own tissues which leads to inflammation in the joints.

Even though there is no firm answer as to whether either form of arthritis is inherited, there are treatments for both.   If you suspect arthritis, speak with your doctor to discuss your options.

DNA and who your friends are

Researchers in the United States say they have uncovered tentative evidence of a genetic component to friendship.   Using data from two independent studies, they found carriers of one gene associated with alcoholism tended to stick together, while people with another gene linked with metabolism and openness, stayed apart.

Here’s some fascinating new research!