10 Ways to Slow the Aging Process

Anti-aging really is possible. In labs and medical clinics throughout the country, new discoveries continue to allow us to understand and intervene in the aging process. For example, scientists have created fruit flies that live 250% of their normal life spans and have made old human cells behave like youthful ones again.

Though you can’t prevent time from passing, you can take advantage of these recent scientific advances to help you live longer:

1. Keep your homocysteine low. High levels of homocysteine correlate strongly with most degenerative diseases of aging, especially heart attacks and strokes. Your doctor can test your homocysteine with a simple blood test. If it’s too high, it’s easy and inexpensive to lower it by taking a good B-complex supplement that includes 500 mcg of B12, 800 mcg of folic acid, 25 mg of B6, and 25 mg of B2 (riboflavin).

2. Eat less. Make every meal count. Make sure each meal provides the nutrients you need, especially protein. Watch your starches. And don’t overindulge. For this to be most effective, you must reduce your calories to about two-thirds of what it takes to maintain your normal weight. Initial weight loss tapers off as your metabolism adjusts to a lower metabolic rate.

3. Exercise. Physical activity can prevent or delay the onset of hypertension, obesity, heart disease, falls, and osteoporosis.

4. Get plenty of antioxidants in your diet. A diet rich in antioxidants will prevent free-radical damage. So enjoy a glass of Bordeaux and eat lots of berries.

5. Supplement with vitamin C — at least 1,000 mg twice a day.

6. Supplement with CoQ10. This nutrient is your armor against heart disease. Don’t worry too much about your overall cholesterol. Having a high CoQ10 level and a low homocysteine level will keep you out of the ER.

7. Get lab results. In addition to having your doctor check your homocysteine, have him check your testosterone, estrogen, CoQ10, and HGH. Follow a natural treatment regimen to correct imbalances.

8. Consider supplementing with HGH. Growth hormone injections, carefully monitored by a physician, can directly reverse some aging effects. They can improve muscle strength and mass, reduce wrinkles and sagging skin, and decrease joint pain and inflammation.

9. Detox periodically. To maintain their optimal function, I recommend detoxifying your blood and liver four times a year. (See “It’s Good to Know,” below, for my easy, four-step detox program.)

10. Don’t worry, be happy. A study of 1,500 centenarians found that their diets, activity levels, and even smoking habits varied widely. But that nearly all of them possessed a good sense of humor and didn’t waste time worrying.

(Ed. Note: Dr. Al Sears is the editor of Health Confidential for Men, a publication devoted to men’s health. For information about it, click here: http://www.agora-inc.com/reports/BUL/WBULE265/.)