Imagine that you were told you that the fountain of youth was discovered and all you have to do is put up forty bucks and you can have a jar of it to swallow. I’m sure you wouldn’t fall for that obvious line of baloney but you hear time and time again. And many believing people do fall for this sort of stuff. Many people act like goldfish. Not that they have fins and swim around in a fish tank or something like that, but because goldfish have an attention span of a measly three seconds. That’s right, only a measly 3 little seconds!
This means that goldfish are slow learners. After all, what can they possibly learn in just three seconds? So, if they eat a tiny worm that makes them sick, guess what they’ll do five minutes later? Yes they will eat another little green worm and get sick all over again. So what happens after they give that guy their forty dollars for that “fountain of youth in a jar” and it doesn’t work? They forget all about the first guy in three seconds just like a goldfish and give another forty dollars to the next salesman claiming the exact same thing! So what does all this have to do with the fountain of youth? Well, even though there is no “fountain of youth in a jar,” there are three important things that can make you live up to twenty percent longer and look twenty years younger!
First is having a positive mental attitude. That’s right, positive thinking actually makes you live longer. In fact, a study done at the Mayo Clinic revealed that optimists lived 20% longer than pessimists! Imagine that looking on the bright side and cracking a smile every once in a while may put 10 or 15 years on your life. There’s another interesting side note to optimists. They have more friends!
The second important thing to know is exercise. Of course you’re aware that everyone is always yapping about how good exercise is. You’ll work hard in the gym. You’ll run circles around the race track and maybe you’ll live an extra year. It’s the last year when you’re too old to care anyway. Well, it gives me great pleasure to tell you just how wrong you are! A groundbreaking study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1994, showed that the bodies of 40 postmenopausal women became 15 To 20 years more youthful after the women lifted weights twice a week for a year!
Do you understand what that means? Lifting weights twice a week is hardly slaving away in the gym. That’s something anyone can do to look 15-20 years younger. I know it’s not quite as intriguing as the “fountain of youth in a jar,” and may take a little more time but it really works.
And for another interesting exercise fact, exercise can even overcome bad genes! In a study of sixteen thousand sets of healthy twins, researchers kept track of the twins’ lifestyles for almost twenty years. At the end of the study, they discovered that those who exercised moderately at thirty minutes of walking twice a week cut their risk of dying almost in half when compared to their sedentary sibling.
This brings us to the third and final reason. It is reducing free radicals to avoid damage. Although most experts disagree about exactly what causes our bodies to become damaged and age quicker than others, one of the leading theories attributes it to damage caused by free radicals. These dangerous molecules that are missing an electron, bind with healthy cells in our body and wreak havoc on those cells’ ability to function. According to this theory, the most optimal approach to slowing the aging process is to provide the body with plenty of ammunition against free radicals. You can do this by increasing your intake of antioxidants and other healthy nutrients. Our bodies produce many antioxidants to counteract the damage, but if there is not a large enough supply in our body, cellular damage may not be repaired and sooner or later, we become very ill.
Forget for a few moments about carbohydrates, protein and fat. Instead focus on food as a source of antioxidants for your health. The most powerful food sources of these all-important nutrients are vegetables and fruits, so those should be the greatest portion of things on your plate. Round out each meal with whole grains, like brown rice, whole wheat bread, cereal and pasta, plus low-fat dairy products and lean meats. Sugar and fat should be the smallest category.
One study done by the National Cancer Institute shows how powerful a diet of this kind can be the key to great health. Researchers examined the eating habits of more than forty five thousand women and found that those who ate a diet high in fruits, vegetables, grains, low-fat dairy and lean meats cut their risk of dying from any cause by thirty percent! That’s a phenomenal finding!
So you have a number of ways to really drink from the fountain of youth! Maintaining a positive mental attitude, exercising, and eating well can keep you happy and healthy as you become older and wiser! And hopefully you will enjoy the process of growing older with all life has to offer.
Want to find out more about thefountain of youth, then read more stories by Dr. Michael Pritsker on how to live healthy pain free with chiropractic care.
Dr. Michael Pritsker, DC Nutrition chiropractic, chiropractor, diet, disease, exercise, Fitness, health, medicine, Nutrition, Pritsker, San Diego