The researchers have found that some people are happy since their birth and childhood. They claim that there is a happiness gene in such people. This gene creates a sort of satisfaction about life and their circumstances. But people who have fewer efficient genes are not very happy, and they mostly see the dark side of everything. As they are pessimists, so they keep on blaming their circumstances for never feeling happy?

Researchers say that there is a gene in the body called 5-HTT, which has a connection with satisfaction. These genes are of two types. One is called long and another is called short type.

So people who have a long type of 5-HTT genes are very cheerful, whereas people with short type of 5-HTT gene are depressed and unhappy. In other words, they have a short type as default. If people know the type of the gene they have, then they can better understand their moods and can control bad moods.

Jan-Emmanual De Neve from London School of Economics is an economist regarding behavior. He did some research and found that in five or ten years it will be possible for the people to understand their genome. As he says that knowledge is power so people can well understand why they are feeling so low. So in any kind of negative situation people can counsel those by saying that maybe this is because of your gene and inheritance as maybe the circumstances aren’t that bad. This type of thinking can make people happier. It can even enhance one’s confidence and motivation level.

The study claims that the 5-HTT control a brain chemical called serotonin, which has a certain connection with happiness. Another research work which was published in 2005 c claim that people who have a long type of 5-HTT gene have a natural tendency towards positive thoughts and images. Such people always try to avoid negative thinking, and are optimists. The researchers also say that 5-HTT actually stimulates our emotions according to its type.

A new research work which was published in the Journal of Human Genetics goes beyond the previous studies. This research study says that 5-HTT is linked with the satisfaction for life. This gene is now considered a base for people’s happiness level. The research involved more than 2500 adults. These people were asked about their level of satisfaction towards their life. Those subjects who had a long type of 5-HTT gene were 17 percent happier and satisfied in comparison to others. This does again prove a strong correlation between among gene and satisfaction.

Source: Independent UK

Anti Aging, Health And Aging, Longevity

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These very cells are surrounded by laws of physics and energy rather than genes. It is interesting to notice that we can practically modify our genes by simple changing our diet and environment. These ostensible changes in lifestyle can benefit our as well as future generations in terms of better health.

Our body is complex, and it is hard to comprehend how our cells react to perception, thought and feelings. It can be said that personal empowerment accounts for how we appear, feel and even how long we will live. The presence of hereditary diseases is relatively much lower than we think. Only 5 percent of cardiovascular disease and cancer are hereditary.

In a popular book entitled: Biology of Belief, Dr. Bruch H. Lipton gives a full-fledge account on the fundamentals of human biology. He says that the notion pinpointing genes to influence our life is a fallacy, and genes aren’t activated or deactivated by coincidence. The mind is responsible for how gene operates within our bio-chemistry.

For instance, if a cell is dying, it is best to analyze the cell environment instead of the cell itself for the cause (s). A health environment would support the cell to function properly. In biology a change in the environment is connected to our DNA, RNA and the final results is the extraction of a protein.

Analogue of the Human Body to a Personal Computer

According to Dr. Lipton Cell’s membrane is what really influences cellular life. So to comprehend biological mechanisms it is fundamental to delve into the membrane. – In other words, how your body instigates environmental signals that lead to various behaviours and thoughts.

The Cell membrane can be compared to a Silicon chip found in a computer. We can thus project the possibility to programme cells. Another interesting point is that we are all programmers, consciously or unconsciously. Our cell nucleus is as a memory disk, which has the necessary DNA programs to produce proteins controlling our biochemistry.

Our cell receptors are like the keyboard. They allow data to be entered into the membrane’s effector proteins. This comparatively represents our Cell’s Central Processing Unit (The CPU of a computer). The environmental information is through the cell receptors passed to the CPU to produce behaviours. We can very easily change or modify the data, which is injected into our bio-computer. It is all about inputs of thoughts akin to typing on a keyboard.

We shouldn’t ignore that our mind has various subdivisions like the conscious and unconscious areas. The conscious mind can easily be influenced while the subconscious mind is rather a storage of learned experiences or instincts, which trigger similar attitude to common happenings. Like for example, a sudden noise can trigger fear amidst people.

However, our self-conscious mind is ingeniously strong. We are able to change behaviour by consciously programming new reactions. These programmed reactions can be derived from practically anything. For instance, if we adjourn to perceptions by others as being ‘true’ then their perception will be stored in our brain and become sub-conscious memories. If these thoughts are wrong, these programmed misperceptions integrated into our subconscious mind. These learnt experiences will limit our behaviours and can lead to negative environmental signals.

People must learn to harness the power to override the subconscious mind with the conscious one. This is the only way to derive free will over our biology.

What Dr. Lipton is trying to convey is that thoughts influence our biology.

In medicine the placebo effect is related to the belief or perception effect, denoted in the explanation. For instance, a study on Arthritic knees found that patient receiving surgery as well as for those receiving fake surgeries (placebo effect) was equally cured. Another study for six popular antidepressant demonstrated that sugar pills were equally effective. These are only a few examples to mention how belief influences our biology.

When positive thoughts improve our health it is called the placebo effect. On the other hand, when negative thoughts cause destruction to our health, it is called nocebo effect. A Doctor has the power to instigate both the nocebo and the placebo effects simply through words. In simple terms, when a doctor communicates with a patient it influences the patient’s thoughts and equally his/her chance to recover.

When a message (in words) is decrypted and reach our cells, the result can be joy, happiness, love, sadness and other emotional states. The Biology of Belief explains how people can change restriction and be cured simply through the power of our conscious mind.

Source: Maximum Life Foundation: David Kekich

Anti Aging, Anti Aging Theories

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The advancement of age is such a normal and innate development in human life leaving people affected in often dissimilar ways, both negatively and positively. As our body is altered both internally and externally in a physiologically manner, we are also changing from a mental perspective. The process of growing old begins at birth but we are not overly aware of the impact until we reach middle age to senior status – a phase of the process that is probably the most critical of all when considering aging.

Therefore, we experience developments as humans age that require explanation as well as some mental hypotheses that attempt to clarify the dissimilarities in how people think about aging and the changes that are experienced.

Experts at the World Health Organization [WHO] state that the world’s elder population has been increasing while birth rates decline. Consequently, we have longer life spans and based on the fact that everyone experiences getting old, it is essential to recognize the psychological modifications that happen throughout the various phases in a life as age becomes more than chronologically significant.

The aging process in many could be considered purely mental based on the pessimistic nature of some who complain about feeling older than they actually are. Many forty something’s are in poor physical condition and put to shame by those in their sixties and even seventies. Age in many people is calculated based on their health and physical alterations like hair loss and graying, skin that wrinkles and droops or muscles that shrink and weaken signaling age progression.

Due to the fact most of us understand our bodies, when they begin to age it innately means our minds are also experiencing some decline along with physical power and mental strength, working together in a cyclical manner associated with aging developments. When our mental health is affected by our physical health and wellness one begins to feed the other. Despite the fact our life spans have increased significantly in the last half century, signifying better international health care, people remain concerned about the alterations in their lives they will no doubt be faced with.

One expert defined particular phases of mental development as it applies to humans throughout their lives as they reach adult status, mid life and into elder years. As a person carries on growing through their life, psychosocially, the emphasis might be toward productive purposes compared to inactivity and idleness upon reaching their midlife. It’s at this phase of growth when their focus tends to shift toward financial stability and family. Individuals that decide upon productivity would do well to practice those skills on their employment or familial responsibilities. Failure to do so could mean they feel underutilized and disassociated with their society.

The final psychosocial growth factor that attributable to elder status involves the aspect of veracity opposed to misery, that time when a person harkens back examining their successes and triumphs developing either feelings of satisfaction and honor or anguish and gloom. According to this expert, elder years are a time for personal reflection, usually accompanied by a feeling of despondency or fulfillment.

One could view mid life as a time of materialism or accumulation of “stuff” and acquiring knowledge that is experience based, while old age is accomplishment based on practice, spirituality and life shaping events and desires that formulate wisdom. Mid life is all about living and doing it the right way as a person’s focus is toward asset acquisition, home and savings for retirement. Old age is more concerned with survival, chiefly about health concerns, potential disease, chronic illness and mortality linked concerns. In some individuals the thoughts of perishing can outweigh all others and they grasp at life through family or even utilizing their creative side since what they create will be left behind after their death.

Age is more than a numbers game but also a psychological procedure when negativity outweighs the positive energy that validates an individual’s reason for being. Children also are experiencing aging as they plod into their lives, tackling new challenges and their aging development is usually a positive thing primarily based on perceptiveness as they grow and their potential contribution as mature adults.

Becoming who they are as an individual is the principal motivation for a young adult’s life, changing swiftly into an achieving phase around this time to begin the process of acquiring knowledge for attaining financial security, fame or perhaps existential illumination – whatever works for them at the time. As previously written they enter into midlife where they will realize the fruit of their labor and attempt to gain even more fruit while achieving security both emotionally and financially – all while laying groundwork for familial responsibility and their professional aspirations in the earlier phase of this mid life period.

Each of these life phases of perceptiveness, attainment, and existing are optimistic and constructive phases, though each phase may come with a little baggage. Still, the final phase of existence is chiefly motivated by trepidation of their mortality. This of course is negative behavior and is the very real advancement of aging. Therefore, it is simple to recognize why aging is first and foremost a mental process. The terror that is death is enduring in our elder years, haunting us with negative forces that id they were somehow alleviated, or changed to a positive experience, death would no longer seem so imminent and frightening for the elder person.

For that reason, it becomes vital that we learn how the developments of aging might be converted into a positive experience. Major media makes aging appear to be a mostly mental issue that we just need to accept the best we can in a positive fashion. As if we understand that aging is a negative process but we will need to look at it as a positive turn of events.

Some would explain the advancement of aging as a chiefly mental process as it is viewed from the prospect of our mortality; it is because of a negative energy but is not actually a negative experience and therefore could be modified into a positive development in one’s life. That does not mean you go out to your local pharmacy and buy up the “anti aging” product shelf. Simply that we look deeper into our being, beyond how we see ourselves physically and alter our “inner individuality” so we might reverse the psychological aging process considerably. If we recognize that we are humans with a soul as the wise do and create an inner spirituality that will sustain us psychologically, we can safeguard ourselves from the negative factors of aging.

There was a time long, long ago when individuals lived a very spiritual existence, survived longer and even looked more youthful than we do today. Searching the depth of our soul will assist us in defeating the fear of our mortality we experience. As we enter old age, if we can view it as an opportunity to fulfill our decisive spirituality and the correct time to investigate those creative aspects of life that we disregarded in our earlier life phases, growing old – the final phase – could be the most productive period of our life.

Anti Aging Theories, Gerontology, Health And Aging, Longevity

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Since man first walked upright we have been asking ourselves why is it that we get sick. And for as long as humans have been seeking assistance from their medicine man, the answer has been – we are what we eat. Obviously the answer is a bit more complex than that but the point is made, what we put in our guts determines what kind of health misfortunes we will likely experience. We now know that what we eat directly effects how we age and what our odds are for any sort of extended longevity.

Most often are shortened life spans are a result of the processed and refined foods and beverages we consume which are loaded with contaminates and can produce the pernicious free radicals that will assault our body’s. They create a whole host of difficulties for us from contracting deadly illnesses like heart disease, diabetes and most foreboding of all, cancer.
Origin Of The Problem: Free Radicals

So, what are free radicals? In rudimentary terms, these are atoms that do not have an electron. Yep! This hitch for the atom means they are chemically abnormal and pretty unbalanced. When they are like this, they force an all out assault on our healthy cells in an attempt to “pilfer” the elusive electrons from some other molecule so they can become steadier. When we consume foods that contain these free radicals, we are inviting unbalanced and combative molecules into our systems where they will cause nothing but trouble and create havoc on a molecular plane – and illness and disease, we get sick!

Ask yourself when the last time you ate a big meal and afterwards you felt overly full, worn out and lethargic? This takes us back to or initial query as to why we get sick. The way you feel after that type of meal is more a response to outrunning an axe murderer rather than eating a meal.

When you pig out at meal time your body is required to digest this overload by expending far more energy that it usually would and for much less beneficial return. This scenario of feeling like you are being chased down by a madman with a gardening implement is in fact the way your body is impacted by the trauma of overeating and without getting any health benefits from it. The consequence of this is you are inviting still more free radicals into your system.

In the same way, as we consume evermore fast food that is processed or refined, our systems must work overtime using up precious energy reserves in order to break down through digestion the lousy food choices you are making. That does not even take into account the preservatives and additives that make up so much of these types of foods. These things have a huge negative impact on our health as we unnecessarily use up energy for digestion that we would ordinarily be using to enjoy our life. That meal better be worth it!

Of course there are other contributing factors that lead to the creation of free radicals like stress in our lives, too much anger and depression. Our bodies become overtaxed by oxidative stress and this causes our immune system to become vulnerable, giving free reign to the free radicals to course through our bodies doing damage. There is no getting away from the fact that this ongoing battle is played out regularly within our bodies and we are willing participants for the enemy in so many cases.

Consuming Natural Fare

Equally as important, eating natural foods or the organic varieties that are available, is a means of rejecting a considerable amount of free radical opposition within our bodies. When we treat our diets with more care and caution, we are removing the imposing burden of free radicals, taking away one portal for them to do harm through our dietary sustenance. There are plenty of other ways for free radicals to do their damage to our health without eating them!

Consuming a natural and organic foods diet is the primary way to having a healthy life. They permit your metabolism to operate at peak efficiency and clear the way for a more vigorous and energy filled physical life. When you feel healthier and have more energy, you function with a new mental outlook and positive well being.

As was hinted at earlier, food borne free radicals are only one manner by which this scourge can invade your being. Free radicals surround us in our environment and ecologically we are at the mercy of fate and our own awareness and ability to avoid exposure to contaminants that will gradually make us sick. Each time we step outdoors we are assaulted by car exhaust, delivered by thousands of automobiles, carbon monoxide from the industrial complex pervades the air we breathe and atmosphere we live and work in.

This poison and others are everywhere we go and there is just so much we can do about it as individuals. But there are certain things we can do to mitigate the effects. On a personal level we can choose where we spend time, how safe we make our own small personal space on the planet. Avoiding plastics and other environmentally unsafe products and many of the contents kept inside them is also a start. Cleaning supplies used in our home can be natural produced rather than man made. Be aware of what types of chemicals we are allowing into our homes.

As for our personal lifestyle choices, many of us could do a better job of making these decisions. Drinking alcohol, smoking tobacco are two choices we make that have a great bearing on the question of why we get sick. It is amazing that we purposely do these destructive things to our bodies than wonder why we become ill.
 
Fortunately, we have the ability to turn around the effects of free radical damage, make us healthier while we do it and decrease the harm that free radicals inflict upon our physiology. We counter the risk of free radicals by learning more about antioxidants and how they serve to protect us and make us healthy.

How Antioxidants Protect Us

Antioxidants is a term that encompasses all sources of nutrition, vitamins or supplements that assist in counteracting and safeguarding us from the damage done by free radicals and oxidative trauma. The most familiar of these antioxidants that do battle with free radicals and aid in keeping us healthy are the vitamins A, E, and C.

These healthy combatants, among other kinds of antioxidants, give up their additional electrons to the free radicals, effectively assuaging them. When they do this they eliminate any reason for the free radicals to run rampant within our systems causing mayhem while destroying our healthy cells, damaging organs all in their attempt to regain their equilibrium.
 It is important to become familiar with at least some of the more common sources of antioxidant laden foods. These would include organic fruits, vegetables, teas [black, herbal and green], nuts and certain spices. These should make up your primary resource for antioxidants since they are more easily able to assist in the absorption of the antioxidants found within them. There is no doubt that taking a supplemental form of antioxidant or consuming vitamins and minerals have a huge impact also.

Antioxidants are amazing for our quality of health but their effects have much more value than previously understood. For instance, antioxidants can significantly reduce the physical pain we feel. Antioxidants help to decrease inflammation internally in cells that encourages less soreness and aching. The effect this has on our personal well being cannot be discounted since it allows us greater freedom for physical activity once the pain is alleviated. Persons who were once not able to exercise can now take part in improving their fitness level. This means healthier heart muscles and the opportunity for a better quality of life and potential longevity.

Therefore, when we ask the question “why do we get sick?” is the answer free radical damage due to oxidative trauma? Are we consuming enough fresh natural foods so we gain all the benefits that antioxidants can produce? That would be a resounding affirmative on both counts. However, we also must start paying closer attention to the kind of environments we place ourselves in. Working conditions, where we live and spend the most time need to be clear of toxicity as much as possible.

If a person works with toxic chemicals, they should consider a job change if they want to remain healthy. Eventually contaminants will leech their way into your system regardless of the precautions taken. When locating your home pay special attention to the surrounding areas. Many older neighborhoods once had factories and industrial facilities intermingled within communities where employees often lived. Now, years later, new families move into these areas with plans to refurbish only to find out too late that the old factories are surrounded in chemical waste from a bygone era. Entire neighborhoods become ill.

It is said that are health is the most important asset we have. Anyone who has been desperately ill can attest to this fact. The majority of us need to increase our personal attentiveness to the dangers around us if we expect to live an extended life span. As humans in the twenty first century we have so many potential threats working against us [we have not even discussed the free radical damage caused by the sun] that we need to do what we can to maximize our chances for a long and healthy life. Start by paying more attention!

Anti Aging Supplements, Health And Aging, Lifestyle, Longevity

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If you follow such things, the name Dr. Elizabeth H. Blackburn, a now famous cell biologist, recently was awarded the Nobel Prize because of the research she conducted on aging. Blackburn is an esteemed director in psychology at the University of California, San Francisco and has been heavily involved in the study of aging since the late nineteen seventies.

What Is The Big Deal?

There are two crucial scientific terms associated with Blackburn’s work – telomeres and telomerase. This is cutting edge science in the field of life extension, aging and longevity. This research is so important it might just be the basis for the eradication of cancer utilizing telomerase as a means of intervention. Additionally, stress is now known as a primary reason why we all age and later we will learn how this factors into the Prize winning research.

Telomeres

In describing telomeres, one needs to envision a shoelace in their minds eye. See the tips of the shoelace? Consider what the purpose of the plastic cap on the end of the lace is for. This is so that the shoelace does not separate and untangle itself. A telomere is essentially a cap at the tip of the chromosome within your cells. Understanding the shoelace scenario makes it obvious what the telomeres responsibility is, to avoid any unraveling of the chromosomes. This is significant because your genes, all thirty thousand of them, are found in your chromosomes. There are twenty three pairs that hold your genetic makeup or code. That code is you – this is your design outline.
 
An Insightful Piece Of Information – How quickly the ends of your chromosomes unravel will determine how soon your benefactors begin spending your insurance money.

Telomerase

Dr Blackburn found an enzyme named telomerase that repairs the chromosome ends when they begin to breakdown. This is amazing news for humankind and someday our offspring or theirs may benefit from the discovery. Enzymes are a form of protein that resides in cells and they trigger reactions in chemicals. Telomerase mend the age damaged chromosome ends. Telomerase thwarts the swift process of senescence that inevitably ends in death. The more we age, the further the chromosome tips become frayed.

Where Does Stress Come Into This?

Dr. Blackburn reveals that it is psychological pressure or stress that is responsible for our cells aging as they do. Scientific investigators draw the association with continual stress [or distress] and the fraying of the telomeres. The higher the level of stress some is under, the lesser quantity of the enzyme telomerase is discharged, resulting in shortened chromosome ends. The biological observation witnessed is a nongenetic reason for progressive aging. This is classic nurture [the stress], and not innately caused by any means.
 
Age Related illnesses

The three primary diseases responsible for individuals passing away are heart disease, strokes and cancer. When a medical evaluation is performed, preliminary symptoms of these big three diseases include telomere length and in what amount telomerase are created. It is also noteworthy that this has been verified by pathologists during autopsies performed on the unfortunate victims.
 
Still unproven, the scientific community believes that cell divisions in irregular cell configurations may be a central factor in the shortening of the chromosome ends, thus, cancer is their assumption.

Eliminating Stress

For more than thirty years of American Studies on daily meditation by Dr, Herbert Benson, from Harvard Medical School, discloses that our bodies show a marked improvement in the immunity function, reduced hypertension and superior heart function due to meditating. Could this be because those individuals who meditate for up to twenty minutes each day produce more telomerase? This question still must be answered.

DNA [or Deoxyribonucleic Acid]

The interesting thing about science is how new discoveries mean new doctrine. Once it was believed that only DNA could generate DNA, These days we now understand that the telomerase enzyme can also produce DNA. What science is witnessing is an amalgamation of sorts, nature in combination with chromosomes and genes commanding how our life operates. Then nurture, that stress that plays upon this operational functionality and the composition of our physical and mental being. The power of our mind is how it combines our emotions, thoughts and behavior to influence our decisions. Then, the left and right sides of our brain – the neocortex – then work together to optimize those results. This is classic nature and nurture working in unison.

Meditation Plays its Role

A person can learn how to meditate in fairly short order. There is really no trick or secret to learning other than implementing the knowledge you have acquired rather than putting it off or overanalyzing what you know. Just get on with it.

All that is required to start eliminating stress from your life is gaining control of your awareness. Once you decide to seriously reduce your stress level there are some basic elements to produce some major modifications.

A Professor at MIT, Dr. Edward Lorenz, who created the phrase ‘the Butterfly Effect” stated, small changes result in immense reactions. If you are prepared to commit to some minor alterations in your every day routines, you could be rewarded with an astonishing ten more years of health and longevity.

Electro Brain Impulses

It is not an uncommon scenario for the big thinkers to attempt to figure out life’s greatest issues prior to them successfully commanding their own bodies and minds. What good is it to figure out the string theory if you are killing yourself with stress in the process? In only fifteen to twenty minutes every day you could defeat the EEG by scoring lower when tested, you can witness the amazing results achieved when you shut your eyes and experience a deepened sense of relaxation.

The electrical charges streaming through your brain are reduced from an active state of consciousness to a relaxed, yet aware state. You simply refocus your thought from any activity visible when your eyes are open, to focusing on your mantra with your eyes shut.
 
What is Mantra?

To begin with it is pronounced just as it looks on the page. The word mantra comes from the Hindu religion and is a particular sound or word series that is repeated while your eyes are shut and your body is in a state of relaxation, terminating your natural conscious flow of words in your head. You are concentrating on your in and out uniformed breathing that does not occur in your normal conscious state. After a few meditation sessions you will become quite adept at bringing yourself into this state of relaxation, and doing so swiftly.
 
If you are disciplined enough to stick with the process and learn how to effectively meditate, you will be able to lower your stress in minutes whenever you feel the need to do so. We know what happens to our physiology when we are stressed and this practice of relaxation will slow down the progression of aging and actually increase your life expectancy and with an improved quality of health.

Do you think you can find just fifteen minutes each day to practice this stress eliminator? For the sake of your longevity, avoid troubling encounters that result in tension and antagonism. You will notice a new level of confidence if you only take the time necessary to learn how to increase your longevity through meditation.

If you can eventually combine your new relaxation routine with mental agility techniques that enhance your cognitive function, you decrease the odds of contracting dementia and Alzheimer’s. Start reading more books that will develop your knowledge base. You will be glad you did when you are living out your golden years with exceptional cognitive capabilities.

Anti Aging, Anti Aging Theories, Bioscience, Longevity

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A Columbia University Medical Center professor named, Yaacov Stern, presents research that reveals even when the brain has been infiltrated by amyloidal plaques and neurofibrillary twists, those suffering with signs of Alzheimer’s who have cognitive reserve will flourish and carry on.

Those among us with an ability to rebound from serious illnesses, depression, and continuing stress and are able to live a satisfied existence and all it has to offer are a resilient group. If you do not have this resilient tendency or characteristic, you will suffer from chronic ill health. Though some will not be able to summon this resilient capacity, others will while many can program themselves for cognitive reserve and resiliency.
 
How Do We Do This?

Cognitive reserve is a gift to those among us that spend their lives learning. By reading something on a daily basis we are training our brains to conquer novel skills sets and by utilizing the Internet, we can experience new thoughts and initiatives. When we do this we expand and broaden our cognitive reserves.

We should make every effort to pass on our own knowledge while spending time socializing with others, preferably those who are like minded or at least have a positive mental attitude. These suggestions have been proven and are backed up by strong evidence via scientific rule of law. You can learn more about this by referring to the Nuns Study Research conducted by David Snowden at the University of Kentucky.

Experiencing Optimism And Passion

Perhaps it sounds elementary and silly, but the more we experience jags of laughter, go through pleasing revelations and benefit from minor achievements, the more we will enjoy benevolent health and well being and fewer malicious infections and inflammatory episodes.

As much as unfounded hope often gives cause for potential success and anticipated improvement, it is again based on fact that a positive mental outlook can have much to do with personal health and longevity. As for the initial statement regarding H1N1 flu, you can indeed cut your chances of catching this epidemic and virulent form of influenza by getting vaccinated against it and finding more ways to smile often and laugh a lot every day, have some fun and enjoy yourself. If you do not believe me you can read about it further based on data collected by Professor Sarah Pressman from the University of Kansas and the Gallup World Poll.
 
Facial Expressions

When you nod your head up and down in the universal sign for “Yes” and turn your head from one side to the other signaling “No”, are you making facial expressions? Yes, absolutely. You are also utilizing five of the muscles in your face to mirror the primary emotions of surprise, anger, happiness, Fear, sadness and disgust. You may not be aware of the fact that your face I asymmetrical – or irregular. Additionally, the left side of your face is more expressive, it shows more confirmation that you are being emotional. If your intention is to try and persuade someone to your way of thinking and are attempting to get a read on their emotions, closely observe the left side of their face.
 
Communal Connection versus Communal Estrangement

When we meet someone, a sure fire way of connecting while with them while conversing is to be animated with your signals like smiling, nodding to them, shaking your head, making eye to eye – this qualifies as communal bonding. Each time we smile we activate the mirror neurons within our brain for understanding, this makes them innately smile back at you, give their head a nod and stare back at you right in the eyes.
 
When we attempt to influence, persuade or try to convince someone of something, we are practicing non speaking methods of contact. When we withdraw, we are setting our self up for communal disconnection. There was a time when we once left our elders to perish on a mountain somewhere, today we practice this social disconnect by placing elders in a nursing home.

Sure it is better than the alternative of being left to their own devices, but we do see less of them as a rule. They often become despondent at being “abandoned” and retreat into themselves rather than participate in activities and meet other folks.

These days we assist in communal disconnection by avoiding eye contact, mindless doodling, we lose focus and or become restless. We tend not to speak or communicate with others because of a failure to concentrate. For some the problem is due to lethargy while others are just intolerant, and it will make future socializing more difficult.

Why Even Care?

As humans we have still another attribute over our tree dwelling relatives, the chimpanzee – the capability to alter or advance our application of our facial expressiveness. It is noteworthy to mention that when experiencing negative feelings, humans will close their mouths so they stifle any yelling, potential biting or verbal rudeness. Doing this inherently puts the brakes to any potential sequence of hostility.

Chimpanzees on the other hand, cannot control their innate hostility and unconstructive feelings. They offer no cooperation since they are caught up in a competitive natural orbit. Human beings have been able to colonize and evolve due in part because they have the capacity of verbal communication but also instinctive unspoken facial expressiveness. This gives them the advantage to communicate for cooperative development through collaboration. It is a classic give and take relationship with obvious advantages and all contributors win.

Strong Understanding

How we express ourselves non verbally through facial expressiveness demonstrates what our current disposition is. Our frame of mind is two sided – when someone else notices our face they can draw correct assumptions from it ninety five percent of the time. Additionally, we also understand our facial expressiveness and support our emotional “canvas” with equivalent behavior.

Inside of us we are hearing a clear communicated memo directed at us that states – you are grinning so you must be cheerful, and becoming even happier. Of course we will listen to our own mind when it speaks to us.

In 1871, Charles Darwin noted that the open expressiveness due to external indications of emotive behavior strengthens it. Investigators of late have found that facial emoting of feelings is actually a genetic attribute lodged in our brains.

In 1900, Professor William James from Harvard Medical School stated that when an emotion is not felt from a physical standpoint, it has not been experienced period. There is more to our emotive behavior than simply the brain response from the limbic system, we express ourselves with facial reactions and this plays a big part in how we present ourselves emotionally.

Botox Treatments

When using Botox cosmetically some interesting side symptoms emerge. The muscles in the face are paralyzed. Those folks, who do not frown, are more cheerful than the people who are incessantly searching for something to be negative about, according to the Journal of Pain, in the May 2008 edition as stated by Michael Cardiff of the University of Cardiff. Interestingly, during intense episodes of pain, when the face muscles are utilized there is an obvious increase in the pain experienced.

So it is suggested that we mutually put into practice Duchene smiling, the authentic variety and Societal smiling which is the phony version. As the saying goes, fake it until you make it is truly accurate. Aging adults should spend at least one minute several times a day to practice social smiling. This will initiate a neural arrangement of legitimate smiling ability.

This kind of Smile Therapy has been working in many classes of society for a number of years now and many older people could also benefit from the practice in order to stay socially connected into their golden years, increasing their likelihood of longevity. The ritual really works and has proven effective for executives who have improved their social circle and financial progression as well as career advancement. More than eighty five percent of those participating in the practice report statistical success. They carry on with the practice as a brain exercise for positive development.

In Closing

A person must ask themselves if they would enjoy a definitive gain over their competitors if they were to read three books, articles and reports – and remember them – while their peers perhaps only are capable of summoning up only one.

Anti Aging, Gerontology, Lifestyle, Longevity

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A researcher of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine has created a new way to stop and even reverse rheumatoid arthritis. He has developed a replication of a suicide molecule that can float, without being detected, into hyperactive immune cells that are responsible for the disease. This stealthy molecule, also whimsically referred to as Casper the Ghost, triggers the immune cells to auto-destruct.

This approach has been tested on mice and does not carry health risks of actual treatments. Harris Perlman, a leading author and an associate professor of medicine at Fienberg, reported that this novel therapy halted the disease cold in 75 percent of the mice on which it was tested. Moreover, the best part of the therapy is that it does not result in any kind of toxicity. This has therefore a great deal of potential to create a completely new treatment for rheumatoid arthritis.

Immune cells that are healthy are meant to die after they have attacked an invading bacteria or virus. However, in rheumatoid arthritis, the immune cells known as macrophages live and go rogue. These cells proliferate in the blood, build up in the joints and attack the cartilage and bone. At this time, there is no efficient, non toxic way to halt them.

Perlman found out that immune cells in rheumatoid arthritis are few in a vital molecule known as Bim. The job of the latter is to order the cells to auto-destruct themselves. In order to rectify that shortage, Perlman has developed a replication of the molecule, called BH3 mimetic. When Harris injected the drug that he had developed into the mice who were suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, it floated like a ghost into their macrophages and the yet resisting immune cells self destructed.

Through his research, Harris has shown that the molecule could avoid the development of rheumatoid arthritis and initiate a diminution of the existing disease. After the drug was injected in the animals with the disease, the joint swelling was decreased and the bone destruction reduced.

Present treatments for rheumatoid arthritis consist of low-level chemotherapy and steroids. However, these treatments are not always effective and they are usually accompanied by side effects. Biologic response modifiers are a newer class of therapy. They are frequently used in combination with chemotherapy and steroids. These are antibodies or other proteins that decrease the inflammation that is produced by the overactive immune cells.

Nonetheless, these biologics do not work for everybody and it can be associated with side effects that include the risk of infection. Perlman explained that the step after this comprises of developing nanotechnology for a more accurate methods of delivering the drug. The National Institute of Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases as well as the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease supported Perlman’s research.

Source: North Western

Anti Aging, Anti Aging Products, Bioscience, Nanotechnology

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Novel research conducted on people who have proven they can live a long and good life that included centenarians who are growing in numbers, allowed researchers to recognize those aspects that have a bearing on how we age well. Great genes accounted for some of this success but individuals cannot count on genetics alone, they must set new life objectives starting with their lifestyle choices aimed at improving their quality of life and their ultimate longevity. These self improvement options are by and large holistic since they comprise the mental, physical emotional, spirituality and social facets of their lives.

In general, a person’s ability to cope with aging lies in the capacity to educating themselves about aging in a superior manner and have the discipline and energy to continue the practice. The field of gerontology is a clinical specialty in its own right so we will only touch on main topics of research in the hope that aging adults will put the information to good use to improve their quality of living in the near future.

Interested readers should do their own research with assistance from the library or pick up some reading material at the bookstore. There is also an avalanche of data on the Internet waiting to be discovered, at health food stores, medical professionals of the holistic variety and health agencies and government departments. The government provides a raft of free information that is worthy of a look:

[The National Institutes on Aging and Health – NIAH - will send a catalog of their publications to you: call 800-222-2225 or visit www. nih.gov/nia for information].

One study, by author George E. Valliant a Harvard medical professor, conducted at Harvard University called Aging Well, acknowledged that there were four general actions that contributed to a satisfying and contented life of leisure in retirement years and they are:

• You need to substitute your friends and acquaintances from your place employment with a whole new circle of friends, a new network that could include activities with your grand kids.

• Learn how to have fun and play – as recreation or competition if need be in order to begin making new friends and to sustain your sense of self worth.

• Try and be creative when you decide upon new activities, especially those that require some skill and camaraderie with others, like taking up art classes, learn a new instrument, creative writing or learn how to garden.

• Never give up learning new things so you will nurture your psychological well being and mental fitness. Dr. Valliant makes a point of mentioning the ancient Greeks used the word scholar to mean leisure. This could only mean that their spare time was spent in learning novel experience. To summarize this, you need a great reason to awaken cheerful each day.

Forming habits that are healthy, is a vital piece of the puzzle for achieving physical and emotional well being within each aging adult. Consuming nutritious meals, steering clear of smoking and alcohol only in modest amounts, daily physical exercise of some kind, and learning to adapt to life’s changes seamlessly will assist with your physical health regardless of your age. It should not matter how old you are when you have a desire to initiate a new program or routine for the good of your health, just do so with your physician’s supervision.

The ability to stay at a healthy body weight and take part in exercise that will tone and strengthen your muscularity, develop better balance, improve your physical bearing and stamina, individuals well into their seventies and eighties will have a superior quality of life than those who are sedentary. There is a plethora of knowledge available about proper eating habits, calorie intake based on someone’s age, weight and activity levels: [The website http://www.MyPyramid.gov, sponsored by USDA]. Be sure to speak to your primary health care provider prior to starting exercise or changing your diet if you have any chronic health conditions or physical limitations.

The simplest of physical activities will help seniors maintain their independence longer. Take your dog for a walk [I have a friend in her nineties who takes her dog Peppy for long walks daily in all seasons, the dog tires first and winds up getting carried home in her walker basket!]. Housecleaning is a great way to exercise without actually exercising and you accomplish an important task while you are at it. Gardening is an excellent way for an elderly person to get a full body workout while doing something enjoyable and fulfilling. Some mid age people cannot keep up with certain elders at community gardens. Try and do some stretching each day to maintain your flexibility. Doing these simple activities, will help you keep your mobility.

If you feel more comfortable doing something physical under the eyes of a professional, many fitness centers have a seniors class [the silver sneakers], they offer Tai Chi, senior yoga classes – all engineered with the elderly in mind. Just remember, there is no charge for walking and getting fresh air is important. You could also take up bike riding, hiking or bird watching. Playing with your grand kids is also free and they will have a ball with you.

By maintaining some physical activity into your advanced years has benefits beyond what you may imagine. You will extend your life expectancy, your stress will be reduced, your mobility will improve and this means independence, cut the risk of diabetes, one of the worst age related illnesses, sleep better, remember more and assist with perking up your mood! Experts agree that for geriatric age groups, the most important factor of aging is the ability to remain mobile. It has everything to do with maintaining your independence.

For most centenarians, learning how to roll with things and adapt is a standard of living they are used to. They maintain an optimistic outlook and pretty much understand they must be more accepting of things they cannot change. They harbor a sense of humor beneath their weathered appearance and are quick to laugh, knowing this will contribute to their continued longevity. They open their minds, cultivate understanding of enlightened change with other traditions and are not afraid to learn from younger generations in order to remain “hip” and keep a nimble mind. They prefer to remain dynamic rather than stagnant. Knowing they have family and friends around keeps them connected and mentally aware of others circumstances other than focusing inward.

When the elderly live by themselves, they must make an effort to interact with others in a community environment somehow. This is especially important if their own family is not part of their lives. Chronic loneliness can lead to stress, irregular and inadequate eating habits along with poor sleep, and ultimately unfortunate medical condition. When we can converse with others and share our ideas, thoughts, goals and concerns, we maintain our humanity and live with a purpose.

Seniors who wind up medically tied to their homes may want to hire a caregiver or companion to establish a personal connection or social contact that is there for them regularly. Nurturing their spirituality as they become older is a vital part of the life of elders that gives strength when they face adversity and find themselves challenged. It assists people to lead a happier life with like minded folks and most churches have some form of voluntary service for homebound constituents.

When you age well you advance in years without feeling fear of the unknown, you are contented and live without regret or resentment. Baby boomers growing older are defining a new paradigm for aging. Successfully growing old is as important to them as any success they have previously experienced in their lives. Aging in style will be the new way forward and growing older will be a welcome time when we are able to finally enjoy what we have been too busy to notice.

Henri Amiel noted back in 1874 that, “to know how to grow old is the master work of wisdom, and one of the most difficult chapters in the great art of living.” Awesome words describing a time in life that can be a renewal of a life deserving or hasten a rapid decline. If the boomers have their way, it will be a groovy time for all who can dig it!

Anti Aging, Gerontology, Lifestyle, Longevity

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The important thing to understand here is that you do not require either a pill or a potion to attain a long life. Rather, you can educate yourself on the remarkable techniques of those persons who are residing in certain sectors of the planet he calls “Blue Zones,” places where people are living extraordinarily healthy and prolonged lives.

These folks have lifestyles with many common denominators like healthy nutrition and plenty of physical motion. However, it is still so much more than this alone, say Buettner, who has been a scribe for National Geographic and has been a guest on NBC’s Dateline program.
 
Individuals who reside in the blue zones have a sturdy familial connection and community links. Isolation is a killer according to Buettner. He and his crack team of research assistants have travelled the globe in search of these blue zones.

They were able to locate five specific areas: In the elevated regions of Sardinia just off the seaboard of Italy; Okinawa, Japan; the Greek isle of Ikaria; a population within the Seventh Day Adventists of California; and a part of Costa Rica that borders with Nicaragua.

What follows are some of the common factors between the people who reside in these areas:

• They do not get their exercise in a fancy gym somewhere, but rather they find exercise in their daily activity like gardening or farming. 

• They do get stressed out occasionally just as we do; they have methods of handling it like utilizing prayer, taking regular naps or simply mingling with their friends at the close of a day to socialize over a few beverages.

Buettner himself is an advocate of the famous “happy hour” and he notes that moderate drinkers tend to outlive their teetotaler brethren.

• The blue zone inhabitants are more likely to have outside interests away from work. This may be something such as fishing, practicing martial arts or just playing with their grand children.

• They do not over do it with eating meat. Usually they eat meat in smaller portions and only several times per week. They also practice “push aways” – they stop eating before they are entirely stuffed.

• They are close to their families, both figuratively and physically. Elderly parents tend to live nearby their offspring and grandkids.

• They attend religious services regularly maintain faith-based community ties, be it temple, mosque or church.

Anti Aging, Anti Aging Theories, Lifestyle, Longevity

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Your body is designed to move and if you have made it through the years with little or no exercise, the frame will eventually disintegrate. If you think of your body like it is a machine, in needs regular maintenance and the more it operates the better it will run between tune-ups. Probably the best method of caring for your body is by practicing yoga. This kind of physical training has shown it can improve a person’s health if done consistently. It is an interesting way to exercise since there are graduated levels of intensity. You can adjust to different levels of difficulty as you age or improve at the regimen.

There are yoga techniques you can do as you age that are ideal for maintaining your physical age and sustaining your physical well being since it will actually slow down age progression. It will make your body more agile, improve your core, add flexibility to your spinal column, reduce stress, make your skin firmer, rid you of that double chin and improve your posture and gait.

The primary concern is to keep your spinal column in good condition, particularly if you have an active way of life. The yoga breathing and stretching movements will make you supple and offer freedom of movement. Yoga is great for all ages but significantly more important as you get older. As a senior looking for some exercise there is no better way to get it then through yoga since it is low impact but offers a challenge.

Before you begin a yoga routine, you should speak to your doctor about your plan. Your physician along with your yoga instructor will have you start exercising slowly. It is as important to warm up prior to doing a yoga regimen, as it is to do the actual yoga exercises. A proper warm up will get your muscles ready for what they are about to go through. As soon as you feel any sort of distress, you should stop and have a rest. As you get used to the routines you will notice your ability to do the more difficult maneuvers will get easier. Do not be afraid to begin a yoga routine if you have not been exercising much or at all prior to joining a class. In no time at all, you will fit right into the whole – mind, body and spirit aspect of the discipline.

Some newer studies have shown that elderly yoga participants have slowed their age progression and felt better than ever before by practicing various yoga routines. The objective of yoga is to meld the mind and body, balancing the body’s different elements. Your entire yoga experience is an integrated program designed to benefit your entire being.

It is important to get some form of exercise as we get older and if yoga sound like it might be a good fit for you, research the practice of asana. This particular posture integrates breathing routines and meditation to alleviate digestive maladies, varicose veins, chronic weak points as well as other age linked ailments.

Practicing yoga on a regular basis will assist you in controlling your weight, as you will be more in tune with your body. It will teach you to understand your body better and it will sync up your psyche.

There are numerous websites and books available that will enrich your knowledge of yoga and assist you in conducting some advance research. These will also help you understand just how yoga will enhance your well being and put you on the path to a better, healthier lifestyle. With yoga in your life, you will age slower and increase your natural life span since you will have authority over the mental and physical factors that are part of determining an extended life. That would include your brain, glands, spine and internal organs, all performing at peak condition. As you grow older, your body will require more oxygen, every cell in your body needs it and yoga will feed your body the oxygen it needs to sustain life. Strengthen your back and core muscles, breathe deeply and expand your lung volume and give yoga a chance to transform your life.

Anti Aging, Health And Aging, Lifestyle

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