Anti Aging Secrets And Nutritional Supplements – Part 1
Todays post about anti aging secrets with respect to nutritional health supplements is a very interesting one which I’m sure you’ll enjoy reading. You’re going to discover a number of ‘eye opening’ facts which most of you won’t have come across before.
These are facts which supplement manufacturers and companies definitely don’t want you to know because they reveal major weaknesses and limitations in their products when it comes to anti aging claims.
I’ve decided to split this topic up because it’s quite a complex one. To keep it ‘readable’ and not bombard you with too much technical detail in any one post I’ve divided it into 4 parts which will appear over the next 2 weeks.
Now, if you’re a regular subscriber you will have noticed I haven’t made a post for over 2 weeks. So, first up let me apologize for that.
I’m actually on vacation in Sydney so it’s hard to get ‘online time’ as per my normal schedule.
Additionally, my website nutritional-supplements-truths.com has recently begun to ‘boom’ and I’ve become inundated with reader questions like never before. There just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done that needs doing.
Anyway, enough with the excuses, let’s start digging into those anti aging secrets!
ANTI AGING SECRETS – SOME YOU KNOW SOME YOU DON’T!
That word ‘anti aging’ has been bandied around in all the various media forms for years now. So much so that of late it has totally outgrown any ‘legitimate’ roots it originally had. Now we are faced with a literal tidal wave of products in the marketplace all promoting some form of ‘anti aging’ capacity.
From a business marketing point of view the term ‘anti aging’ is simply a connotation for looking and feeling younger in some way or to some degree and ‘anti aging’ has basically become nothing more than a valuable brand through which businesses can increase sales!
But, the misleading and deceptive marketing presentations of numerous ‘anti aging’ product manufacturers, not to mention outright fraudulent practices, seems to have reached no limits! That’s because of the enormous profits driven by the antiaging phenomena and these are of course an intrinsic result of people’s natural desire to look good and maintain their youth.
With nutritional science constantly evolving and promising ‘better and better’ results, people are spending increasing amounts of their disposable income in the hunt for stronger anti aging properties.
It’s clear to me thought that an increasing number of savvy health-conscious consumers are learning to no longer be sucked in by exaggerated ‘anti aging’ claims and to take them with a grain of salt. So the lingering question as to the ‘worthiness’ of anti aging products must then become one of degree.
To what degree are anti aging benefits obtainable from a given anti aging product’?
Let’s address that question from the point of view of nutritional health / vitamin supplements.
ANTI AGING SECRETS - NUTRITIONAL HEALTH SUPPLEMENTS
Can nutritional health supplements create significant anti aging benefits for the user?
From a nutritional science standpoint the answer is “yes!”
But do they?
For almost all supplements the answer is a definite “no!” (Note I said “almost”)
To understand why this is the case we first need to define ‘anti-aging’.
The term ‘Anti Aging’ has evolved to represent a number of different common meanings and connotations depending upon whether you’re dealing with the medical, scientific or business communities.
Nutritional health supplements of course define ‘anti aging’ purely from a business perspective and as such we need to address the following common product claims:
- Stopping your aging process
- Reversing your aging process or “turning back the clock”
- Slowing down / normalizing your aging process
I would be highly surprised to find anyone who honestly believes a nutritional supplement can actually “stop” the aging process despite this subtle connotation wafting out from cleverly put together marketing presentations by disreputable supplement companies.
Most supplement manufacturers however would definitely have you believe their supplements can turn back the clock making you look and feel (biologically) younger.
But the truth is that’s not possible. Well at least not yet!
When it comes to the word ‘reverse’ (certain) supplements can undo (to varying degrees) the effects of degenerative and age-related disease thus technically speaking making some people feel and look younger. This can to some be interpreted as an anti aging response.
The market’s best nutritional health / vitamin supplements are also believed to be able to improve damaged DNA. This goes far beyond their abilities to simply limit oxidative damage to DNA through the use of antioxidants. Here we are talking about actually repairing damage that has already occurred!
That’s what the leading industry experts are trying to do right now - find a way to clinically prove that their supplements actually do repair damaged DNA.
Assuming they can do this then at that point the “turning the clock back” claim will become valid.
But, as of right now, what are we left with?
- Slowing down and normalizing your aging process!
- Bringing it back more in tune with what nature originally intended!
This is what I believe is the appropriate anti aging definition in respect of nutritional health supplements.
It must also be remembered that anti aging is relative to the times we live in and the way in which we are now aging. In other words it is linked to 21 st century environmental, emotional and dietary/nutritional stressors which are currently impacting on our aging processes.
The bottom line here is that the daily effects of these stressors has resulted in a speeding up of the aging process for an overwhelming majority of the population. Premature aging if you prefer.
MOST PEOPLE ARE AGING WAY TOO QUICKLY – FAR FASTER THAN WHAT NATURE INTENDED!
This is clear with just a casual look at the ever increasing year on year stats for degenerative disease like diabetes, cancer, arthritis, Alzheimer’s, heart disease, stroke and so on. People are contracting these life-debilitating diseases at earlier and earlier ages.
How often do we now hear of people in their 40’s having had a heart attack!
ANTI AGING SECRETS – THE COMPONENTS OF AGING
To be capable of producing significant and effective anti aging effects which slow down and normalize aging, a nutritional vitamin supplement must address the primary causes of aging!
But….
This Is A Complex And Multi-Faceted Task!
Yet 99% of supplements, including virtually all the market’s leading, so-called ‘elite’ multi ingredient vitamin / health supplements address this task via ONE APPROACH ONLY – the reduction of free radicals through the use of antioxidants!
This is why they FAIL to make any real headway!
Anti Aging Can Only Be Successfully Accomplished By Targeting The Main Components Of Aging - Not Just One!
There are numerous causes attributed to aging but without doubt four of the primary and most important ones are:
- Free radicals
- Glycation
- Methylation
- Inflammation
So, that means your supplement must be capable of:
- Using Antioxidants to reduce and control your free radical production
- Preventing Glycation which leads to Age’s
- Balancing Methylation for Healthy DNA
- Reducing Chronic Inflammation which contributes to degeneration.
The critical aspect to understand here is that these critical components ARE ALL INTERDEPENDENT ON ONE ANOTHER!
Optimizing the normalization of your aging process means you must not short change yourself by excluding any one!
ANTI AGING SECRETS – REDUCING FREE RADICALS
Today I’ll concentrate on the free radical component of aging and then tackle the other components in parts 2, 3 and 4 of this anti aging secrets topic.
Just about every supplement consumer out there has heard of free radicals and antioxidants, right!
You probably know that antioxidants are like ’superheroes’ for your health and that free radicals are really nasty, unstable molecules wandering around inside you which can cause you serious health problems.
Antioxidants have the ability to neutralize free radicals and so your body uses them to keep your free radical population to adequate levels and minimize the damage they cause.
If your free radical levels are in excess they will accelerate your aging and basically cause havoc to your health.
Here are just some of the diseases linked to excess free radicals:
- Various Cancers
- Arteriosclerosis, atherosclerosis
- Heart Disease
- Stroke
- Arthritis
- Diabetes
- Alzheimer’s
- Emphysema
- Ulcers
- Parkinson’s Disease
- Cataracts
- Senility
Now we come to ‘Oxidation’.
Picture an apple which you’ve taken a bite out of and left sitting for 20 minutes on the kitchen sink. The exposed inside part of the apple has turned brown right! This is an example of a process called oxidation (chemicals inside the apple have reacted with oxygen in the air) and this is what oxidation does on a molecular level!
So, what you need to know here is that oxidation creates those bad guys - free radicals!
And there’s oxidation going on inside you ALL THE TIME. Just the simple act of breathing in oxygen (respiration) creates oxidation which in turn creates free radicals. So, you can’t avoid oxidation nor the creation of those nasty free radicals, they are continuous and inescapable!
But not to worry because in controlled quantities free radicals are fine. They are in fact necessary in many of your metabolic processes. The bottom line is simply to ensure that oxidative stress and the production of free radicals do not increase to the point of over production!
Remember above I mentioned that environmental, societal and dietary/nutritional stressors are to blame for premature aging.
Things like smoking including second hand smoke, air pollution, electromagnetic radiation including sunlight and x-rays, stress, exercise, food additives, toxic chemicals, smoked and barbecued foods, lack of nutrients in our diet, pharmaceutical drugs, and even alcohol all create free radicals.
In the civilized world of today you are impacted by these factors every single day. You simply cannot escape them! Three or four decades ago things were significantly different. Food was not processed as it is today and it was far more nutritious with a much greater antioxidant content. Nor were people exposed to today’s ridiculous levels of pollution and toxins.
Faced with these dilemmas you need to take action to ensure you take in enough antioxidants to meet the double challenge of these destructive free radical promoters and an antioxidant depleted food chain!
Supplements are a popular and sensible choice of action!
ANTI AGING SECRETS – ANTIOXIDANT SUPPLEMENTATION
All nutritional health supplements tackle the free radical component of aging through the use of antioxidants.
In cheap and middle of the road supplements you will always find the well known vitamin antioxidants vitamins A, C, E and the trace mineral selenium, all of which are quite weak (and very cheap ingredients for manufacturers to use!)
The up-market multis do much better by using more powerful and expensive antioxidants like green tea, gingko biloba, alpha lipoic acid, lutein, bilberry and grape extract.
BUT NONE OF THESE CAN COMPARE TO AN EXCEPTIONALLY POTENT ANTIOXIDANT LIKE L-GLUTATHIONE!
Anti aging secrets No. 1:
L-Glutathione is an absolutely critical anti aging ingredient which you definitely want to see in your supplement!
But in 99% of supplements you won’t find it for 2 reasons!
Firstly, L-Glutathione needs to be in the ‘reduced’ form. This is a smaller molecular size because ‘normal’ L-Glutathione will not pass through the intestinal walls into the blood stream.
Due to the extreme price of reduced form L-Glutathione very few supplement companies can afford to include it. That’s because almost all supplements are made to a price!
Secondly, L-Glutathione must be protected as it passes through the stomach before being released in the upper intestine! This is the only place that L-Glutathione when taken orally can be effective.
This means that any supplement containing L-Glutathione needs to be ENTERIC COATED! This is a special aqueous coating which protects tablet ingredients from exposure to stomach acid and then harmlessly dissolves when the tablet reaches the alkaline environment of the upper intestine.
Once again due to price controls enteric coating is almost never used on multi ingredient vitamin health supplements. (The unique supplement I use is a rare exception).
Incredibly there are market leading health supplements out there which include L-Glutathione in the ‘normal’ form and without enteric coating.
This is a perfect example of how supplement companies, including the biggest and most well known ones, can deceive you and hide weaknesses in their products.
Of course L-Glutathione is not a miracle worker. It needs to be backed up by a wide range of other powerful antioxidants. The synergy created as these age defying nutrients interact together at the the molecular level create far more potent results in neutralizing more free radicals and bringing their production back more acceptable levels.
Here’s a list of the most potent antioxidants which you need backing up L-Glutathione in your supplement:
- N-Acetyl L-Cysteine
- Lutein
- Bilberry Extract
- L-Carnosine
- Green Tea Extract
- Grape Seed Extract
- Gingko Biloba
- Alpha Lipoic Acid
ANTI AGING SECRETS PART 1 – SUMMING UP
At the top of this article I said that while nutritional health supplements can create significant anti aging benefits, virtually all do not. Since they are made to a price the bio-chemists formulating them simply cannot include all the ingredients that they know should be there to get the job done properly.
Just look at what I’ve revealed for our first component of aging – free radical production!
Does your supplement contain L-Glutathione in the reduced form with an effective dose amount of at least 100 mg AND is it enteric coated? Does it contain every one or at least most of the key antioxidants listed above?
Unless your using the same supplement that I do then I know the answer is ‘no’.
Now, keep in mind that free radicals are ONLY ONE of the four primary causes of aging so there’s a lot more that a supplement has to tackle to truly address the anti aging issue and protect you from degenerative disease.
In my next 3 posts I’ll address the other 3 key components of aging:
- Glycation
- Methylation
- Inflammation
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P.S. If you’d like to read a review of the one of a kind nutritional health supplement I use, just follow this link, it’s called Total Balance
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Tags: aging, anti aging, anti aging secrets, antioxidants, best vitamin supplements, health, herbal suppplements, herbs, longevity, multivitamins, nutritional health supplements, nutritional supplements, nutritional vitamin supplements, super supplements, Supplements, vitamins, wellness



July 13th, 2008 at 5:32 am
Too bad i didnt come across this blog before. Great stuff you got here. Thanks.
July 15th, 2008 at 11:00 pm
[...] If you haven’t yet read Part 1 and would like to, just follow this link anti aging secrets and nutritional supplements part 1 [...]
July 23rd, 2008 at 12:25 pm
I agree totally with your comments about the definition of anti aging when it comes to nutritional supplements. Pity that so few supplements can give any real anti aging benefits.
What you have said about glutathione as the powerhouse antioxidant and the need for enteric coating is all new to me yet I consider myself fairly well informed about supplements and health- so thanks. It’s great that you don’t just produce generic content that can be found on just about any supplement blog or website. It’s always the same material appearing all over the web which is clearly written (and copied) by people who are not experts in their professed fields. I appreciate your depth of content and expertise. I’ll shoot over and read the next part right now.
Cheers
Rex
July 29th, 2008 at 6:02 am
Oh my gosh. I didn’t realise that there was so much difference between nutrtional supplements. I believed that a supplement was a supplement. So, seems like the brand I’m using is basically a waste of money. The anti aging stuff is a real eye-opener. Thanks - I look forward to reading all four parts of this anti aging secrets series.
August 24th, 2008 at 7:40 am
[...] you may like to read my anti aging secrets and nutritional supplements series There’s four parts and each part covers one of these four aging components. Parts 1-3 are [...]
September 5th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
I love the information I get here, Brett is a great writer and he knows his stuff! I have never heard any of this before, it is a lot to absorb! I will be back for more.
September 15th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
Wow! So much fantastic information on aging and nutritional supplements, as always. Thanks!
September 20th, 2008 at 8:00 am
Psychic Reading Meanings…
I couldn’t understand some parts of this article, but I guess I just need to check some more resources regarding this, because it sounds interesting….
November 13th, 2008 at 3:33 am
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