Why Sugar is Responsible for Aging Skin

Have you been noticing a few extra wrinkles, some deep lines or sagging in your skin? Sugar may be one of the culprits. Yes, sugar gives us that momentary rush of heaven, that temporary hit to our taste buds and who can resist that decadent dessert presented so beautifully, yet all the while feeling a twinge of guilt with that potential of more jiggle in our midst.

 …But whose worrying that the decadent dessert will cause wrinkles and even sagging skin. Not many.

Sugar, in all its forms whether natural or processed (corn syrup, agave syrup, honey, cane sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, etc.) promotes not only inflammation, a depressed immune system, but damage to the skin and to our internal tissues or organs as well. This is the result of a chemical reaction in the body called glycation. The majority of people have an excess sugar intake, and excess sugars initiate glycation at an increased rate.

The human body depends on sugar and oxygen to provide the energy.

The mitochondria power up every cell in our body using glucose, fatty acids, and oxygen. 

But it comes with a price…

When you cut an apple and wait, what happens? 

That brown color begins to appear….. a result of oxidation.  We’ve all seen the crispy browned potatoes, a roast chicken, toast, the charred grilled steak or the crispy fried chicken, that crispiness is glycation or caramelization (browning).  

When proteins and sugars attach, glycation occurs, and this same process happens to the tissue in the human body as well – the caramelization of our bodily tissues.  Eating foods with high sugar content or that have been processed with high heat (like deep-frying) means you’re ingesting another form of glycation – Advanced Glycation End Products or AGEs (as is so aptly named) directly. 

Think of your cells as engines running on fuel, with much exhaust. Well-tuned engines run clean. When our cells are operating healthfully, they burn energy efficiently  Not-so-well-tuned engines produce thick, black smoke. 

Similarly, unhealthy cells operating inefficiently produce more exhaust and acid. Toxic residue then begins to accumulate in and around the harmful cells. This degrades our cellular health and the engines that run our cells; our mitochondria. Our mitochondria are key to our optimal health. Sugar is the most damaging compound to mitochondria.

As glycation progresses, this leads to mitochondrial energy production that slows down, along with increased oxidative stress. Eventually, damaged mitochondria can stop functioning, accelerating the aging process both inside and outside the body.

Glycation takes its toll slowly. It gums up your proteins, deactivates your enzymes, triggers unhealthy, cellular signaling and damages your DNA = AGEing you.

The two tissues in our skin that make us look so youthful and spring are elastin and collagen. The worst part?  They are the very proteins that attach to the sugar in our body creating glycation – attacking these two proteins which become discolored, weak and hardened and eventually we see wrinkles, sagging skin and a loss of radiance.

But remember, this is not just happening with the tissues on the outside of our body….more importantly, it is also affecting the tissues on the inside of our body as well contributing to diseases such as heart disease, cataracts or cancer, and kidney health.

Glycation is a natural process in the human body because most everything that we eat converts to glucose – even veggies!  However, concentrated types of sugar ingestion speed up the process and have a more powerful, robust glycating effect.

The good news? 

Glycation can be powerfully slowed. Choosing an anti-inflammatory lifestyle 

will take you to more youthful skin and optimized health:

Avoid Added Sugar in All Forms.

Avoid Excess Carbohydrate Intake. Such as whole wheat bread, white potatoes, white rice, pasta, and all grains. Excess healthy carbs are also a contributor to glycation.

Avoid High-Temperature Cooking (think crispy, blackened foods).  Steaming, stewing and poaching are the cooking methods rather than frying, direct-fire grilling and high-temperature roasting.

Add Antioxidant Rich Foods:  Make every plate and anti-inflammatory meal.  Choose all veggies, nuts, seeds, low-sugar fruits such as raspberries, blackberries, kiwi, healthy fats such as avocados, macadamia nut oil, and healthy proteins such as whole pastured eggs,

Add Targeted Supplements to Prevent Glycation and AGEs: 

Carnosine. Carnosine helps prevent cellular glycation. This nutrient is a potent free-radical scavenger and the anti-glycating agent that inhibits AGEs formation and its cross-linked proteins. Take carnosine with fat for bio-availability. 

Benfotiamine.  This nutrient (a lipid-soluble form of thiamine, vitamin B1) can boost your body’s cellular levels of vitamin B1, which is an essential component in clearing the dangerous debris left behind due to glycation.

Curcumin. Curcumin is the active component in the spice turmeric.  Curcumin is an antioxidant, powerful anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, anticancer, memory-enhancing, life-extending, and Curcumin uniquely protects against AGE-induced diabetic complications.

Tomato Paste.  Research shows that simple tomato paste strongly inhibited the formation of AGEs in the glycation process.

Resveratrol.  Resveratrol has the ability to reduce oxidative stress along with its highly protective cellular effect.

Rosemary. The use of the herb rosemary will help reduce the formation of AGEs.

Alpha Lipoic Acid.  Alpha Lipoic Acid possesses unique properties that specifically slow mitochondrial dysfunction and reversing mitochondrial damage by preventing the release of damaging oxidants.  

Taking action will prevent and improve aging skin creating healthier, more youthful skin and in general, significantly help reduce aging.

References

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3583887/

Thorpe SR, Baynes JW. Role of the Maillard reaction in diabetes mellitus and diseases of aging. Drugs Aging. 1996 Aug;9(2):69-77.

Li Q, Chen AH, Song XD, et al. Analysis of glucose levels and the risk for coronary heart disease in elderly patients in Guangzhou Haizhu district. Nan Fang Yi Ke Da Xue Xue Bao. 2010 Jun;30(6):1275-8.

Van Boekel MA. The role of glycation in aging and diabetes mellitus. Mol Biol Rep. 1991 May;15(2):57-64.

Sztanke K, Pasternak K. The Maillard reaction and its consequences for a living body. Ann Univ Mariae Curie Sklodowska Med. 2003;58(2):159-62.

Berrone E, Beltramo E, Solimine C, Ape AU, Porta M. Regulation of intracellular glucose and polyol pathway by thiamine and benfotiamine in vascular cells cultured in high glucose. J Biol Chem. 2006 Apr 7;281(14):9307-13.

Kiho et al. Tomato paste fraction inhibiting the formation of advanced glycation end-products. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 68:200-5 (2004).

Jain et al. Effect of curcumin on protein glycosylation, lipid peroxidation, and oxygen radical generation in human red blood cells exposed to high glucose levels. Free Rad Biol Med 41:92-6 (2006).

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27596404

Liu J. The effects and mechanisms of mitochondrial nutrient alpha-lipoic acid on improving age-associated mitochondrial and cognitive dysfunction: an overview. Neurochem Res. 2008 Jan;33(1):194-203.

Reduce Inflammation and Lose Weight with Antioxidants

Did you know that besides doing wonders for your health, a certain nutrient group might also help you get rid of belly fat, keep you lean overall, provide you with energy to burn and reverse inflammation?  Antioxidants can do that.  Specific antioxidants found in fruits, veggies, chocolate, tea, wine and much more, help to ward off belly fat, inflammation and increase energy.

Antioxidants are nutrients — including vitamins like E and C — that prevent or slow oxidative damage throughout the body.  Antioxidants act as free radical bounty hunters that prevent and repair the damage done by the free radical.

Free radicals are oxidants and are a result of normal metabolic processes (such as with our mitochondrial function) in the human body or from external sources such as exposure to X-rays, cigarette smoking, air pollutants, industrial chemical chemicals.

Chronic inflammation is the core cause of most every illness or disease (including aging).  Even weight gain itself is a result of inflammation – the silent inflammation of fat cells that reduces metabolism and promotes health conditions as well.

When you reverse or reduce low-level inflammation, you are increasing every aspect of your health on a cellular level <=== This is key. You are increasing your mitochondrial health which are the tiny engines or the ‘batteries’ that run the cell. Without our healthy mitochondria, you begin to gain weight, become fatigued and increase vulnerability to disease and we are not even addressing mental wellness. We essentially are our mitochondria…if they are not healthy, we suffer.

Short sleepers need more antioxidants.  Recent research shows that the combination of low antioxidant intake and a lack of sleep promotes obesity.  Higher antioxidant intake could lower the chance of obesity simply by increasing antioxidant intake.

How can you obtain a plethora of health and weight loss benefits?  By Loading-up on these antioxidant superstars every time you hit the grocery store—they’ll help you bring out your healthy best in these five ways:

Multitasking Polyphenols

These phytochemicals help to curb belly bulge by improving the body’s metabolism, help fight aging by preventing — and repairing — cellular damage. The major sources of polyphenols in the average diet are flavonoids.  Flavonoids are powerful antioxidants, even more, powerful than vitamins C and E combined that also have anti-inflammatory effects that can protect against dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and cancer. 

Antioxidant Vitamins

The human body does not produce antioxidant vitamins naturally, so it is vital to add them in our daily intake of food, be it through foods or supplements. Common antioxidant vitamins include vitamins A, C, E, folic acid, and beta-carotene. Including a wide array of flavonoid foods to your diet will promote a leaner and healthier you.

Antioxidant Enzymes

Enzymes are types of antioxidants that come from the protein and minerals we eat as part of our daily diets. These enzymes are synthesized in the human body, and in order for antioxidant enzymes to provide optimum antioxidant activity, they require cofactors such as iron, copper, selenium, magnesium, and zinc. The quality of the protein source we eat does have an impact on the quality of the antioxidant enzymes.

So where can you get your fair share? 

Apples, cherries, cinnamon, turmeric, tea, chocolate, beans, onions, garlic, leeks, and sweet bell peppers, all berries (blueberries, strawberries etc), plums, spinach, beans (especially lentils), Brussels sprouts, broccoli, citrus fruits, watermelon, Pretty tasty choices! 

Alkaline Ionized Water

You read that right: There is a type of water –  ionized alkaline water that acts as an antioxidant within the cell. One of the greatest benefits of alkaline ionized water is the ability of H2- antioxidants (also called molecular hydrogen) to penetrate cell walls and do their work where no other antioxidant can. 

One reason H2 antioxidants are the most powerful antioxidants is that they are so tiny. These microscopic antioxidants can enter cells and give their benefits directly into them. No other antioxidant can do this. Another amazing feature of molecular hydrogen is that it can bond with other antioxidants, such as vitamin C or E after they have been “used up”, and regenerate them.

The health benefits are amazing: 

·        Increased Energy

·        Super-Charged Hydration

·        Better Sleep

·        Weight Loss

·        Healthy Skin

·        Anti aging

·        Healthy Immune System

LEMON WATER

Adding lemon to your water is also alkalizing to help keep you free from disease, inflammation and weight gain. Lemon peel contains pectin, a soluble fiber that has been shown to help with weight loss. Add an ounce of lemon juice and some zest to each of your eight daily glasses of water (which will help you feel fuller) as the pectin in the lemon turns to a gel that helps balance blood sugar – stopping hunger and cravings.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                source: Lori

5 Reasons Why Banana Peels Are Great For Your Skin

Rubbing banana peels on your skin helps reduce aging signs like wrinkles, age spots, and fine lines and soothe inflammation and itchiness due to acne, psoriasis, and eczema. Apart from that, banana peels can also moisturize your skin, reduce puffy eyes, and keep your skin protected from UV rays.

Bananas are great for you to eat. They’re abundantly healthy because of the many nutrients and vitamins they store. The fruit has also, for long, been in use to beautify skin. What’s interesting is that the peel can also be used on the skin for various beauty treatments. Wondering how? Here are 5 great ways banana peels are good for your skin.

5 Benefits Of Banana Peels For Your Skin

1. Reduces Signs Of Aging

The presence of free radicals in the skin results in cell damage. Banana peels are abundant in antioxidants, which when used on the skin combat these free radicals and prevent cell damage.1 The lesser the skin damage, the lesser the signs of aging like wrinkles, fine lines, and age spots. So, use banana peels to make your skin look younger and radiant.

How To Use

Rub the inner portion of a banana peel gently on your skin.

Leave it on for about half an hour and, then, wash with warm water.

2. Relieves Symptoms Of Acne, Psoriasis, And Eczema

Banana peels are said to reduce the inflammation and itchiness that accompanies severe skin conditions like acne, eczema, and psoriasis thanks to its abundant antioxidants and potassium. Besides being a natural treatment method for these skin conditions, banana peels are also said to be great for existing scars and marks.

How To Use

Cut a small piece from a banana peel.

Run the inside of the peel gently on the affected areas of your skin till the peel turns brown.

Leave the peel fibers on your skin for about 30 minutes; then, wipe off with a clean cloth dipped in warm water.

Try this thrice a day for a few days, and you’re likely to see your skin clearing up.

You could also choose to leave the peel fibers on overnight and wash it off in the morning.

3. Moisturizes Skin

If your skin is dry, try using banana peels to moisturize it. Banana peels contain potassium, which is said to be great for dry skin.

How To Use

Moisturize your skin by rubbing the inside of a banana peel on it gently. It’s a good idea to cut pieces of the peel to make a rubbing on the skin easier.

4. Eases Puffy Eyes

The potassium in banana peels helps get rid of the external salt on the skin below your eyes that causes fluid retention, which in turn gives you puffy eyes. The peels are also said to be great for getting rid of under-eye circles.

How To Use

Similar to how you would use cucumber slices on your eye, cut up a banana peel into pieces big enough to cover your eyes.

Leave the pieces on your eyes overnight to give you a fresh look the next morning.

Alternative Method

Scrape some fibers from the peel, and mix it with aloe vera gel.

Apply the mixture around your eyes, and leave it on for about 10–15 minutes; then, rinse with cold water.

Repeat this every day for a few days, and you’re likely to notice your eyes looking less puffy.

5. Protects Skin From UV Rays

Banana with its peel contains vitamin C. This makes it a great source of antioxidants, which prevent cell damage – even that caused by the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays.3 So, banana with its peel is a great choice for a natural sunscreen.

How To Use

Rub the inside of a banana peel on your skin gently before you step out into the sun.

Besides these, you could also use banana peels to ward off warts and to get rid of any toxins in your skin. Simply rub a peel on your skin gently. The peels, in general, are said to be quite safe and shouldn’t cause any side effects. 

Remember to use fresh banana peels for beauty treatments.

So, put the peels you would normally throw away after eating the fruit to use and give yourself amazing, glowing skin.

                                                                                                                                                                                              source: BannanaTips

Why your real age may be older – or younger – than your years

Biological age can diverge from the number of years we celebrate our birthdays - and it sheds light on the time we have left  

AGE is a peculiar concept. We tend to think of it as the number of birthdays we have celebrated – our chronological age. But this is just one indicator of the passage of time. We also have a biological age, a measure of how quickly the cells in our body are deteriorating compared with the general population. And these two figures don’t always match up.

Just take a look around: we all know people who look young for their age or folks who seem prematurely wizened. Even in an individual, different parts of the body can age at different speeds. By examining how chronological age lines up with biological age across the population, researchers are starting to pin down how these two measures should sync up – and what it means for how long we have left when they don’t.

In recent years, studies have shown that our biological age is often a more reliable indicator of future health than our actual age. It could help us identify or even prevent disease by tracking the pace at which we’re getting older. It may even allow us to slow – or reverse – the aging process.

People have always been interested in being "forever young" and today's society is no different. We want to resist the aging process.

The speed at which we are aging can be measured - it's called biological age, or how old your body really is.

The area of study which is now called longevity, and was once called anti aging, is hugely popular in the states.

It's something I'm very interested in, and see it as a big part of the future for myself and my clients.

Your chronological age is how old you actually are.

Biological age is the age of your body at the cellular level.

Today we will look into how you can establish, what your biological age is and how you can improve it.

There are a few longevity factors in the list which surprised me!

(Deep question alert!)

What is the purpose of life? I don't mean any deep seated stuff, like procreation.

I just mean, what is more?

Firstly, and most importantly, people want to be happy. Easier said than done.

Happiness is a state of mind. It's a feeling.

Ask someone with a big goal (like building a successful business or losing more than three stone).

"What will be reaching your goal do for you?"

Often they will say something like "When I get there I will feel happy", or "satisfied with myself", or they say "I will feel proud".

"I will have more energy".

"I won't be afraid of trying new clothes on or going out with friends".

"I don't want to feel like a slave to food"

"I don't want to be scared to look in the mirror or get on the scales".

Life is all about feelings.

People spend their entire lives in search of feelings! (mostly happiness, contentment, satisfaction and love)

How people actually reach this state of "happiness" is different for us all.

Most people I know AIM for a decent job (or business) with decent money.

All with the ultimate goal of having a good retirement.

I hear people say "When I finish work, I'm going to do this or I'm going to... (insert goal)".

The point here being, if being happy and having a nice retirement is people's main goal in life, then keeping your body fit and healthy surely must be part of your plan.

I know of a very wealthy man who got cancer and passed away just before his retirement, I'm sure that was not part of the master plan, he had built his business up so he could sell it and have a nice retirement (as most business people do).

He didn't make it and didn't get to "cash out".

Many people don't make it to retirement because their "plan" is messed up from the start.

Without sounding depressing we only get one shot remember.

This is NOT a rehearsal.

A lot of people get to retirement age and their body is wrecked!

This stops them from being able to enjoy their time off as much. Living life with lots of restrictions. "I can't go there because of the steep hill", or "I can't do that because of my back or my knees".

After working hard for 40-50 years - to give yourself a good pension and retirement, this is the last thing that anyone wants.

Peoples bodies are like cars.

On one hand, you have new cars with high mileage that are not well serviced.

On the other hand, you have old cars with low mileage that have been well looked after.

I want YOU to be like a well looked after old car, with low mileage when you get to your retirement.

I know some people, that slog away and get to the age of 40, and feel and look like they're 50 or 60!

I also know many people who hit retirement age and feel like a 40-year-old, and can keep on working and exercising for another 20 years!

This is all dependent on how we live our lives, obviously there are things such as injuries, diseases and other bad things which can impact our lives negatively through no fault of our own but on the whole, we are in control of our own health.

What affects our longevity?

Scientists agree that these factors all affect your longevity in some way, big or small. (this is not a definitive list)

Muscle size and strength
Level of education
How pro active you are with going to see the doctor if needed
A number of friends you can rely on, and love in your life
Your diet
Blood pressure
Your upper body strength
If you enjoy your work or not. 

Whether you smoke/drink alcohol or not, and the amount
If you exercise or not?

Most of us shorten our lives and ultimately kill ourselves, through our bad habits and lifestyle choices, whatever they may be.

As you would have guessed, it is possible to slow down the onset of aging and even reverse it to some extent.

I must say, that there is nothing wrong with aging, it is inevitable. It is something we should be proud of, a chance to show our wisdom to the younger generation.

This article is just to show you how you can SLOW the aging process with ease and actually enjoy it.

The Ageing Process

As we get older our bodies start to slow down and stop being able to function as well, sadly there is no getting away from this.

BUT through healthy living and making the right choices day in day out we can delay our body slowing down by years!

Just think how much more you will be able to enjoy your retirement if you feel like a 40-year-old? and can spend it with the people you love.

Compare this to how much you will enjoy it if you can barely walk up a flight of stairs without having tired legs and being short of breath.

Your chronological age doesn't have to be the same, or worse, than your physiological age.

How to slow the effects of aging

The list above obviously helps you but here are a few more ideas for you to beat the clock.

When some people think anti aging, I'm sure some of you may think of things like anti wrinkle creams and lotions, hair dying products, botox and maybe even plastic surgery.

That does kind of sum up some of the western worlds that these are the steps that the majority of people (plastic surgery being an extreme example) will take to make them look younger, rather than eating healthily and exercising.

Aging leads to loss of muscle mass, loss of mental function, low mobility and a lack of energy, and as you know the cosmetic type anti aging steps I mentioned won't help any of these.

Top tips to delay aging naturally:

Enjoy the Outdoors - Don't spend all of your time cooped up indoors behind the computer or watching TV. There are plenty of things to do and see outside, especially on a nice day I can't think of anything better than going for a walk with the family down the park or beach. Sunlight also is a natural source of Vitamin D.

Yoga & Meditation - I would say that this is one of the most important strategies in staying young. I started to do this myself and it honestly makes me feel great. Yoga and meditation can help you relax and lower your stress levels (linked with aging) dramatically. It can also help you to see things a lot clearer.

Yoga is also great for your flexibility, the more flexible and supple you are the less chance you have in the future of suffering falls and lack of mobility.

Socialize - Loneliness can be a real killer. Socialize as much as possible with your friends and family. Get out there and do things, go to the cinema, concerts, attend an evening class (the more mentally stimulating the better).

Stay Strong & Active - You have to keep moving or your body will come to a standstill. Taking part in regular exercise is absolutely vital. Regular strength training is extremely important.

Losing muscle mass is something you want to avoid or at least delay for as long as possible so strength training will help this as well as keeping your bones strong, this will lower your chances of osteoporosis.

Nutrition

I believe food is medicine, many of the affects you get from modern day medicine you can get from eating the right foods, or supplements.

Nutrition influences biochemistry. Biochemistry influences everything at a cellular level.

If you eat well there should be no need for some medications.

If you spend your whole life eating fresh, natural whole foods and stay active then it will also show. You will most likely be lean, mobile, disease free and full of energy, a rarity these days.

You should aim to eat a diet containing lots of quality fats and protein's (the bodies building materials) which will help you to maintain your muscle stores. Also, protein boosts the production of HGH in your body, HGH (Human growth Hormone) is your body's natural 'fountain of youth'.

As you age the production of this hormone slows down greatly, regular strength exercise (lifting, pushing and pulling heavy stuff) and quality protein keep the production of this hormone going!

Eat plenty of antioxidant rich foods - Antioxidants which are found in colorful fruit and vegetables help to reduce the damage caused by free radicals in your system.

Free radicals can speed up the onset of aging; they are unstable electrons (O1 molecules)which are produced during metabolism. They damage the cell nucleus and the mitochondria.

Free radicals bounce around inside your cells like a pin ball, causing damage every time they hit something. They cause absolute havoc.

Antioxidants provide the free radical with the extra O1 molecule they need to become stable O2 molecules.

Good quality natural foods are the best way to combat these harmful free radicals. Natural organic foods are packed with antioxidants which neutralize the free radicals before they cause too much damage.

Eat Omega 3s - They fight inflammation, improve the appearance of your skin and aid brain function. Three vital things that we need as we age. So make sure you get as many omega 3s into your system as you can, the best source is fresh fish, if not a fish oil supplement will do.

Lower Sugar Intake - Aim to cut out any excess sugar that you eat, excess sugars can modify essential proteins in our body which can lead to wrinkles and energy loss.

Look after your skin through good food and lots of water - Eating foods containing vitamin A (sweet potatoes, broccoli, spinach, asparagus, and carrots), Vitamin C (red peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, strawberries, oranges, kiwi and pineapple) and Vitamin E (nuts, seeds and spinach) are a great way of helping your skin look healthy.

Stop smoking and limit alcohol intake - There are few things that age you faster than smoking and drinking alcohol every day so cut out smoking and do as much as you can to drink less.

Lower Stress Levels - This is another big one, I just mentioned that there are few things that age you faster than smoking and alcohol; well I think stress is one of them.

Being constantly stressed will ruin your mood, energy levels, social interaction as well as causing so many health problems.

As I mentioned above, I have found deep breathing techniques, yoga, and meditation really important and a great way of combating stress.

Let's be realistic the big medical and health companies aren't going to promote anti-aging through the things I just said, they are going to promote it through new miracle pills, lotions and creams, there is a lot of money to be made from it so they will keep on doing it.

The people who buy these products don't have to alter their lifestyle one little bit so it suits them which is why it is so popular.

Is there a cure for aging?  ==>> Foods That Make You Look and Feel Younger

http://lifeandgreatness.com/foods-that-make-you-look-and-feel-younger/

We ultimately reap our rewards in our retirement, if you have invested some time and effort into your "health & fitness account", you will reap the rewards.

If you haven't then you won't!

You can actually measure your biological age online with a biological age calculator.

If all of the things, I have mentioned above didn't require effort or commitment then everyone would be running around into their 90s and later!!

But unfortunately we don't, we die much younger than that.

Depending on what stats you use, in 2010, US men were reported to live on average until about 77 or 78, and women on average live until 85 or 89 years old.

Do it naturally and do it right.

Let me know your thoughts on this topic, comment below, I really want to know what you think.

Thanks for reading, take care,