Sept. 08, 2014
By Barbara Minton
(Health Secrets) How do you look at life? Do you view aging and degenerative disease as just inevitable parts of living, or do you plan to stay healthy and fit for as long as you can? If you fall in the second category, it’s time to get started on a positive aging program so you can really live until you die. A positive aging program is one that protects you from cancer, cardiovascular disease, inflammation, diabetes, and the damage that comes from oxidation. And it is one that protects your energy and zest for living too. Here are five supplements that can help you look and feel your best as the years do by.
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Five must-have supplements for positive aging
Selenium — This is the mineral that stands guard against cancer. A large scale study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) involved 1,312 people over an eight-year period. It highlighted the incredible power of selenium. Researchers found that supplementing with trace amounts of selenium produced a 46 percent reduction in lung cancer, a 58 percent reduction in colorectal cancer, and a 63 percent reduction in prostate cancer. This is because selenium elevates the body’s detoxification capabilities and boosts certain enzyme systems that fight free radicals. Selenium even bonds with mercury and escorts it out of the body.
Green vegetables would be high in selenium if they were grown in soil containing adequate amounts of the mineral. But the reality is that most soil has been depleted of selenium as well as other minerals, even soils used to grow organic produce. Population studies have shown that where soils have the lowest amounts of selenium, multi-forms of cancer are rampant.
The best way to be sure you have adequate levels of selenium is to eat two or three Brazil nuts a day. Supplements of selenium chelated with methionine would be the next best choice.
Ubiquinol — This is the more bioavailable version of CoQ10, a vitamin-like nutrient naturally produced in the furnace of cells where food, oxygen and water are converted into energy. It’s also available as a supplement. The heart muscle contains highly concentrated amounts of Ubiquinol, due to the high energy requirements of cells located there. Ubiquinol is one of the body’s most powerful antioxidants.
Declines in ubiquinol result in less cellular energy and diminished protection against oxidative stress. This is stress produced by free radicals that can damage proteins, fats and DNA, allowing degenerative diseases to get started. Studies have reported dramatic decreases in CoQ10 levels and increased oxidative stress associated with the aging process and with many age-related conditions.
The ability to produce CoQ10 and convert it to ubiquinol for use in the body starts to diminish in the 30s and is apparent in 40 year olds. Restoring this vital nutrient to optimal levels by supplementing can help you experience the energy levels you had when much younger.
If you are currently taking statin drugs, be aware that they block production of CoQ10, and this is behind most of the devastating side effects you are experiencing.
N-acetylcysteine (NAC) —